Egypt Daily News – On the first day of the New Year, the Russian state energy company “Gazprom” announced the suspension of the transportation of Russian gas through Ukraine to Europe as planned.
The company added, in a statement via the Telegram application, that “the Russian company does not have any legal or technical means to pump gas through Ukraine due to the leadership in Kiev not renewing the gas transportation contract.”
The Ukrainian Ministry of Energy confirmed that the flow of Russian gas through its territory had stopped as of 7 a.m. today, Wednesday, local time.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that stopping the flow of Russian natural gas through Ukraine to Europe represents a major defeat for Moscow.
Zelensky added that when Russian President Vladimir Putin assumed the presidency for the first time more than 25 years ago, the volume of Russian gas passing through the territory of Ukraine to Europe amounted to more than 130 billion cubic meters annually.
He continued in a post on the Telegram application: “Today, the transit of Russian gas is (zero). This is one of Moscow’s biggest defeats.”
Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Haloshenko described stopping the transit of Russian gas through his war-torn country as a “historic event.” He added: “Russia is losing markets and will suffer financial losses.”
Under the contract, Ukraine was also receiving billions in transit fees for a long time. However Halushenko said that the gas transportation network was prepared to stop transporting gas with the help of the European Union, which sought to find alternatives to Russian gas after Moscow launched its comprehensive invasion.
Zelensky noted that most European countries had adequately prepared for the transitional phase, but stressed that Moldova needed support during this period.
At the same time, Zelensky stressed the need to overcome “the hysteria of some European politicians who prefer to deal with Moscow’s mafia-style schemes rather than pursue transparent energy policies.”
This remark appeared to be aimed at Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who criticized Ukraine’s decision. Zelensky also said, in his post, that he hopes that more shipments of American gas will be sent to Europe, according to what President-elect Donald Trump announced. The Ukrainian president pointed out that the more gas available on the market, the lower the prices.
He added that this would remove the last traces of Europe’s dependence on Russian gas. After the transportation of Russian gas stopped, the Slovak company operating the gas transportation network confirmed that it was not receiving gas.
Filling has been suspended, which means that Slovakia will no longer receive Russian gas through this line. Slovakia, a member state of the European Union and NATO that borders Ukraine, threatened Kiev with the consequences of taking this step.
Gazprom said that the validity of the contract that was signed on December 30, 2019 expired this morning, noting that the Ukrainian side repeatedly refused to extend the contract. Kiev said that it will no longer allow Russian gas to pass through its territory in order to deprive Moscow of billions of dollars in revenues that are used to finance the war against Ukraine.
The Slovak government condemned Kiev for this decision, while assuring residents that its gas storage facilities are 100% full, and that it has sufficient reserves for the winter period. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who critics accuse of taking a pro-Russian stance, threatened to stop electricity supplies from Slovakia to Ukraine.
Fico is one of the strongest opponents of military aid to Ukraine within the European Union.
