“Course conducted at the behest of the United States”: why the EU is calling for preparations to cut off gas supplies from Russia

European countries need to be prepared for the fact that gas supplies from Russia will be interrupted sooner or later.

With such a call in an interview with the DPA agency, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, made.

“Russia has partially or completely cut off gas supplies to 12 member states.

Therefore, Europe must be prepared for the worst-case scenario: a complete halt in gas supplies sooner or later,” the politician said.

In her opinion, “the Kremlin is an unreliable partner in the energy supply of Europe,” because Gazprom allegedly deliberately maintained a low level of filling of its gas storage facilities.

In this connection, the paramount task for the EU is to achieve independence from Russian gas by 2027, the head of the EC stressed.

• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

• AP

• © Virginia Mayo

As clarified in the DPA, according to the European Commission, insufficient preparation for the cessation of gas supplies from Russia could lead to a drop in economic growth in the EU countries by an average of 0.9-1.5%.

In order to prevent a negative development of events, absolutely all countries of the European Union should start saving energy resources and share them with those EU members that suffer from their shortage the most, von der Leyen believes.

“Even those Member States that buy almost no Russian gas cannot avoid the consequences of a possible shutdown of supplies to our domestic market.

Therefore, it is important that all member countries curb demand, save more and share with those who are most affected,” the head of the EC believes.

Since, according to von der Leyen, due to close economic relations with each other, all EU states will feel the impact of the gas crisis, the head of the EC recalled that on July 26, at a special meeting of EU energy ministers in Brussels, the proposal of the European Commission on a voluntary reduction in gas consumption will be discussed all members of the community.

According to the European Commissioner, for the period until March 31, 2023, the EU states will have to reduce gas consumption by 15%.

“I am sure that energy ministers ... are aware of their responsibility.

It's about creating a safety net for everyone to make sure we get through the next two winters," von der Leyen said.

"They shut everything down"

In Moscow, the fears of Ursula von der Leyen are considered unfounded.

As the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov told reporters, Russia is not interested in stopping gas supplies to Europe.

“Russia is a responsible gas supplier, and no matter what anyone says in the European Commission, in European capitals, in the United States, Russia has been, is and remains a country that largely guarantees Europe's energy security.

Not declaratively, but de facto guarantees it," he stressed.

Peskov noted that the pumping of gas through the Nord Stream, after the installation of the turbine that was undergoing repair work, would resume to the extent that would be possible from a technological point of view.

Recall that since mid-June, gas supplies via Nord Stream have decreased to 40% of the maximum possible volume due to the untimely return of the gas pumping unit to Gazprom, which was previously transferred for repair to the German concern Siemens.

The turbine was being serviced at one of the company's factories in Canada, which was then unable to leave due to anti-Russian sanctions.

Later, Berlin and Ottawa were able to find a compromise on this issue, and today the unit has already arrived in Germany.

However, Beate Baron, spokeswoman for the German Ministry of Economy and Climate Protection, said at a briefing that the German authorities will not disclose information about the location of the turbine for security reasons.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about the groundlessness of the West's attempts to blame Russia for the impending energy crisis.

As a result of his working visit to Iran on July 20, he stressed that the Western countries themselves refused Russian gas, although Gazprom is ready to supply the required volumes.

“We closed one route, the second route, put these gas pumping stations under sanctions.

Gazprom is ready to pump as much as necessary, they (the EU countries. -

) closed everything themselves, ”Putin said.

He also noted that the West today is trying to shift the responsibility for its own mistakes in energy policy to the Russian Federation, which "has no basis."

• Nord Stream pipeline

• Gettyimages.ru

• © Stefan Sauer/picture alliance

"We didn't live beyond our means"

Meanwhile, not all EU countries are ready for the prospect of a voluntary reduction in gas consumption.

The initiative of the European Commission has already been condemned in Spain, Portugal, Poland and Greece.

“(Brussels plan. -

) is not the most efficient, not the most efficient and not the most fair ... Unlike other countries, we Spaniards did not live beyond our means in matters of energy consumption,” the vice-president said at a press conference on July 20 Prime Minister Teresa Ribera, Minister of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge of Spain.

In turn, the Minister of Climate and Environment of Poland, Anna Moscow, said on the same day that the European Commission is promoting the mechanism of gas solidarity, as it only cares about the interests of those who currently lack gas.

And in Greece they even intend to demand their exclusion from the EC plan.

As Greek government spokesman Yiannis Ikonomou stressed at a briefing on July 25, the proposal of the European Commission is unacceptable for the country.

“Since for Greece it means a reduction of more than 15%, it means a reduction of 24%,” RIA Novosti quotes Iconoma.

It is noteworthy that the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, on July 21, in a comment to the industry portal Oilprice, said that reducing gas consumption by 15% would not help the European Union to survive the coming winter painlessly.

In order for the heating season to pass in more or less stable conditions, European countries will have to go for an even greater reduction in consumption - up to 20% of current volumes.

Looking for someone to blame

According to experts interviewed by RT, the current change in Brussels' rhetoric regarding the role of Russian gas in the EU is quite natural.

“The fact is that in the spring, when loud statements were made about the uselessness of Russian supplies and the rejection of them, it was warm, and the shortage of gas during this period was really not considered a big problem.

However, now the heating season is approaching, and the EU countries have begun to realize that an alternative to Russian energy resources has not been found, ”explained Vladimir Olenchenko, senior researcher at the Center for European Studies at IMEMO RAS.

Now Europoliticians are faced with the problems of housing and communal services and gas supply to various industries, in particular chemical and agricultural, he noted.

“Therefore, in Europe they have now cooled down, to put it simply, and are now looking for options in order to maintain external dignity and appoint someone to blame.

Because it is not in the rules of the West to admit their mistakes,” Olenchenko said.

• Gettyimages.ru

• © Alex Biasiato / EyeEm

In turn, the deputy director of the Institute for Strategic Studies and Forecasts of the RUDN University, a member of the political council of the MGER, Victoria Fedosova, in an interview with RT, noted that all attempts by Brussels to relieve themselves of responsibility for the impending energy crisis speak of the desire of "European bureaucrats to prevent political suicide."

“Brussels needs to at least outwardly cover up its course of separating Europe from Russia, carried out at the behest of the United States.

Von der Leyen is trying to demonstrate empathy for the European layman in order to make not the EU leadership, but Moscow, the villain.

And the fact that it is Washington that is pushing the course of European countries from mutually beneficial cooperation with the Russian Federation is trying to mask it, presenting it as a voluntary choice of a union of European nations, ”the analyst believes.

However, today one should still distinguish between the position of the European Union as an association and the countries included in it as subjects, Vladimir Olenchenko emphasized.

“When we talk about the position of the EU, we note that it is mainly expressed by such persons as Ursula von der Leyen, Josep Borrell, Charles Michel and others.

However, their statements often do not reflect the position of all countries of the Commonwealth.

And the current situation with the reduction of gas consumption is an example of this.

After all, it is important for Brussels to observe the interests of the “big brother” - the United States, and for the authorities of European countries - the interests of their citizens, ”the expert concluded.