European Union (EU) officials were asked to ratify a proposal to jointly decrease their gas usage this winter, to differ Russia’s manipulation of stocks as an economic weapon. Czech industry official Jozef Sikela, whose country carries the rotating EU presidency, said that Russian President Vladimir Putin was behind state-funded Gazprom’s plan to cut down gas releases to Europe. “Putin will proceed to fiddle with his dirty contests in misusing and extorting gas stores,” Sikela said as he reviewed the joint strategy with the EU energy ministers in Brussels.
He said the Gazprom cut “is proof that we have to accept the game in our hands, and we have to deduct the reliances on Russian reserves as soon as possible.”
In February, Russia occupied Ukraine. In reaction, EU members exacted an escalating cycle of economic embargoes on Moscow – only to reveal their energy supplies in peril. Russia’s Gazprom announced it is reducing daily gas releases in Europe via the Nord Stream channel to 33 million cubic meters daily – about 20% of the pipeline’s facility – from today. The corporation said on Monday it was stopping the undertaking of one of the last two turbines due to the “technical circumstance of the engine.” But EU commissioner for fuel, Kadri Simson, rejected this claim.
“We understand that there is no technical justification to do so,” she asserted. “This is a politically motivated action, and for that purpose, the pre-emptive deduction of our gas needs is a wise strategy.” Last year, Russian accounted for around 40% of EU gas imports. As per the formulated EU proposal by AFP, all member countries should cut down gas usage by 15% by the end of March 2023 to reimburse for falling allotments. But, according to the Czech occupancy and the EU Commission, exceptions have been schemed for island nations such as Ireland, Cyprus, or Malta and countries with no connection to the interconnected gas store grid.
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