Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday there was no time this year to sign a new gas transit deal with Ukraine and blamed Kiev for refusing to extend the deal that carries gas to Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Austria.
“They announced that they will not renew the contract,” Putin said, adding that Kiev is punishing Europe with this decision.
The current five-year gas transit agreement between Russia and Ukraine expires at the end of the year.
“There is no contract and it is impossible to conclude it in three to four days,” Putin said in a televised briefing.
Russian gas supplies to Europe via Ukraine are relatively small. Russia transported around 15 billion cubic meters of gas through Ukraine in 2023 – just 8% of the peak flows of Russian gas to Europe via various routes in 2018-2019.
The Soviet-era Urengoi-Pomari-Uzhgorod pipeline brings gas from Siberia through the town of Sudzha – now under the control of Ukrainian military forces – in Russia’s Kursk region. Then it passes through Ukraine and reaches Slovakia.
In Slovakia, the gas pipeline divides into branches that go to the Czech Republic and Austria.
Russia is ready to supply gas through Ukraine to any customer, but said an ongoing process makes that impossible, Putin said.
He also reiterated that Russia is ready to supply gas to Europe through Poland through the Yamal-Europe pipeline.
Source: www.cotidianul.ro
