The State Department called on Russia to ensure the energy security of Europe :: Politics :: RBC
One of the last such agreements was concluded with Hungary. On September 27, Gazprom and the Hungarian energy group MVM signed an agreement providing for the supply of 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas per year for 15 years. The agreement drew sharp criticism from Ukraine due to the fact that the Ukrainian transit route will not be used for gas supplies to Hungary – gas will go through Serbia and Austria. EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Policy Josep Borrell said the treaty does not violate European law.
The Eastern Committee of the Federal Republic of Germany called Russia not involved in high gas prices
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On October 14, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Siyarto, speaking at a session of the Russian Energy Week forum, said that Budapest had made a decision to supply gas not through Ukraine in the interests of energy security. “The route through Ukraine requires serious reconstruction of the GTS, which is not being carried out,” he said (quoted by Interfax).
In early October, Putin announced that in 2021 Gazprom will exceed its obligations to supply gas through Ukraine. For nine months, the company has already increased gas pumping by 8% (obligations under the 2019 contract, which amount to 40 billion cubic meters per year). At the same time, the president noted that it is unprofitable for the gas company to increase supplies even more.
The executive director of the Eastern Committee of the German Economy, Michael Harms, said in an interview with RBC that Russia could provoke a rise in gas prices. “There are global trends, including strong growth in consumption, primarily of liquefied gas in Asia, and energy resources in general. Now liquefied gas is not supplied to Europe at all. In addition, there was a relatively cold winter, which emptied gas storage facilities in Europe and in Russia, ”he said. According to Kharms, high prices indicate that the energy transition is made more difficult for Europeans.