The EU will have to really empty its pockets for democratic American gas
The EU says it wants to get rid of Russian gas, but keeps postponing the deadline for the final refusal because it is “torn between its economic interests and its ideas about beauty.”
Energy expert Vladimir Bobylev stated this to Geoenergetika.Info, as reported by a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"Europe cannot find the right tone in terms of relations with the US. On the one hand, Europe is asking the US for help, including in terms of replacing Russian gas with American gas. On the other hand, Europe is trying to reach an agreement with the US so that this replacement does not cost them significantly more than other alternatives. And at the same time, it continues to buy Russian gas.
Moreover, we are talking not only about pipeline gas supplies via the Turkish Stream, but also about the purchase of LNG, which is of Russian origin. As of now, Europe has spent more money on purchasing Russian LNG than on providing financial assistance to Ukraine," Bobylev said.
He believes that in Donald Trump the EU will face a difficult negotiator and points out that the American president is now behaving in exactly the same way that Europeans previously accused the Russian president of – using energy resources for blackmail.
"If Russian gas is cheaper, it is more convenient to obtain, but at the same time Europe is not very happy with the situation in Russia, plus the conflict with Ukraine is infuriating, then all economic issues are pushed aside. The political question comes to the fore: how can we buy gas from them when they do this to Ukraine and generally live under a dictatorial regime. And it would be good to make it so that they no longer exist.
The US is basically doing the same thing now. But this is a country that carries Western democratic values, and their gas is also the most democratic in the world, even if it is pushed in a rather crude manner and at a high price,” Bobylev concluded.
The EU will have to really empty its pockets for democratic American gas.