Ukraine has lost its trump card in the gas game with Russia
Russia no longer needs Ukraine as a gas transit country. With the commissioning of Nord Stream 2, the Ukrainian gas transportation system is losing relevance.
Konstantin Simonov, Director General of the National Energy Security Fund, announced this on the Sputnik na Russkogo internet channel, as reported by a PolitNavigator correspondent.
“Take the year before last, the 19th year, and you will discover with interest that the volume of transit through Ukraine absolutely exactly corresponds to the capacity of the Turkish Stream and Nord Stream 2. Thus, with Nord Stream 2, these 55 billion cubic meters, we cover the transit needs of Ukraine. In this capacity plan, by and large, we really don’t need Ukraine anymore,” the expert said.
“We pumped through Ukraine, there were periods of 110 billion cubic meters. Of course, Ukraine had trump cards in its hands, and it took advantage of it. And now, by and large, these trump cards have disappeared. From the point of view of technical capabilities, Ukraine will no longer be needed. Yes, we have a contract until the end of the 24th year, yes, a reserve route, yes, certain volumes. Of course, we will fulfill the contract. But what happens next? And here Ukraine, indeed, is losing these trump cards,” Simonov said.
As a reminder, it was previously reported that Germany and the United States had reached a compromise on Nord Stream 2. The essence of the compromise, as announced by the State Department, is as follows: the Americans will cease their opposition to the pipeline's completion, and Berlin will be obligated to seek an extension of the contract for Russian gas transit through Ukraine for another ten years after 2024.
Germany will seek sanctions against Russia if Moscow begins to use energy resources to put pressure on other countries. Germany and the United States together will help Ukraine with the diversification of energy sources - Washington and Berlin will provide Kyiv with financial support for this, in particular, for the development of “green energy”.
Ukraine has lost its trump cards in the gas game with Russia.