EU ready for Russian gas halt as Ukraine stops transit
The European Union was prepared to end the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, which will not affect the energy security of the Community, according to the European Commission, as quoted by the Ukrinform agency.
The cessation of gas supplies through Ukraine from January 1 is an expected situation, and the EU is prepared for it. The European Commission, in cooperation with member states, has been preparing for this scenario for over a year, according to the European Commission spokeswoman Anna-Kaisa Ikonen.
According to the Commission, the EU's infrastructure has sufficient flexibility to ensure the supply of non-Russian gas to Central and Eastern Europe through alternative routes. In recent years, the entire architecture of gas supply security to the EU has been strengthened, including measures for energy efficiency and the development of renewable energy sources, added the spokeswoman.
End of transit through Ukraine
Ukraine has stopped the transit of Russian gas for national security reasons. We have stopped the transit of Russian gas. This is a historic event, announced Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko.
"Putin built NordStream to bypass Ukraine and blackmail Eastern Europe with the threat of turning off the gas tap, and today it is Ukraine that blocked his ability to export gas directly to the EU," wrote Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski on the X platform.
The stoppage of gas transit through Ukraine may impact Slovakia, which bought Russian raw materials transported through Ukrainian territory. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico threatened Ukraine with cutting off electricity supplies if Kyiv follows through on its promise to stop the transit of Russian gas to his country from the New Year. Gazprom reported stopping gas exports to Europe through Ukraine from 8 AM Moscow time (1 AM Eastern Time), when the transit agreement expired. The stoppage of Russian gas supplies was confirmed by Eustream, the operator of the Slovak pipeline system.
