U.S. dooms Europe to hunger, cold, isolation: Russian parliament leader

MOSCOW, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Washington has doomed Europe to hunger, cold and isolation, said Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of Russia's lower parliament house, the State Duma, on Friday.

The United States sells gas to Europe, which is already hit by record inflation, at much higher prices than in the domestic market, thus weakening the competitiveness of the European Union economies, Volodin wrote on Telegram.

The abnormal heat in Europe has hit the agriculture sector hard and the harvest was significantly less than last year, while electricity shortages have resulted in power price hikes, he noted.

It was under pressure from Washington that some European states have refused Russian energy, severed economic cooperation with Russia, and banned the entry of Russian citizens, Volodin noted.

"Washington is ready to do everything to maintain its power over the world, sacrificing for this the welfare of citizens and the economy of European countries," he said.