Putin holding Europe to ransom by cutting gas supplies in response to sanctions
RUSSIA has blamed Western sanctions for its decision to curb gas supplies to Europe.
On Tuesday, Gazprom – Moscow’s state-backed energy giant – announced it would slash gas deliveries through a key European pipeline by 40 per cent, report The Guardian.
In a statement, the firm said it had been forced to partially suspend operations at the Portovaya compressor station on the Russian Baltic Sea coast.
“Due to the sanctions imposed by Canada, it is currently impossible for Siemens Energy to deliver overhauled gas turbines to the customer,” it said.
“Against this background we have informed the Canadian and German governments and are working on a viable solution.”
The move, Germany says, is politically motivated, and has appealed to Canada to review its sanctions on Moscow.
Robert Habeck, Germany’s economic minister, said: “I also have the impression that what happened yesterday (Tuesday) is a political decision, and not a decision that is technically justifiable.”
He added: “What effect it has on the European and German gas market, we will have to wait and see.
“The Russian side’s argument is simply a pretext. It is obviously a strategy to unsettle and drive up prices.”
