The head of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Radosław Sikorski, reacted to reports that Ukraine had suspended the transit of Russian gas to Europe with entries on the X platform. He stated that it was “another victory after NATO's expansion to Finland and Sweden.” Sikorski recalled that Russian President Vladimir Putin was building the Nord Stream gas pipeline (through the Baltic Sea) to “bypass Ukraine and blackmail Eastern Europe with the threat of turning off the gas tap.” “And today Ukraine blocked his ability to export gas directly to the EU,” Sikorski emphasized.
On Wednesday morning, the Ministry of Energy in Kiev announced that at 7 a.m. local time (6 a.m. in Poland), “in the interest of national security”, Ukraine has stopped the transit of Russian gas through its territory.
– This is a historical event. Russia is losing markets and will also suffer financial losses. Europe has already decided to give up Russian raw material, announced Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko.
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Sikorski's entries
The head of Polish diplomacy commented on the decision of the authorities in Kiev on Platform X Radosław Sikorski. In the first entry, written in English, the Minister of Foreign Affairs stated that “Putin spent billions on the construction of the Nordstream gas pipeline (Nord Stream – ed.) to bypass Ukraine and blackmail Eastern Europe with the threat of cutting off gas supplies.”
“Today, Ukraine cut off its ability to directly export gas to the EU. Another victory after NATO's expansion to Finland and Sweden,” Sikorski said.
In the next entry, in Polish, the head of Polish diplomacy said that “Putin was building Nordstream to bypass Ukraine and blackmail Eastern Europe by threatening to turn off the gas tap, and today Ukraine has blocked him from exporting gas directly to the EU. Who is digging holes under whom…” .
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The five-year contract has expired
On Wednesday morning, the 5-year agreement between Moscow and Kiev on gas transit expired, which Ukraine did not extend due to the Russian military invasion in February 2022.
The Russian section of the Voice of America radio station reminded that Ukraine waives approximately $800 million annually in gas transit fees from Russia.
Last year, Reuters estimated Russia's revenue from gas exports through Ukraine at around five billion dollars. Exports of a Russian state-owned company Gazprom to Europe via all pipelines in 2024 amounted to 32 billion cubic meters, about half of these supplies reached the European market through Ukraine.
tvn24.pl, Voice of America, The Moscow Times, NV
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