The E.U. is preparing an emergency plan to help Member States cut back on Russian energy
As per the International Energy Agency (IEA), the United States (U.S.) has provided more Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to Europe than Russia by pipelines, for the first time.
Russia ships about 150 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe via pipelines every year, and another 14 to 18 billion cubic meters of LNG, accounting for over 40% of total imported natural gas of Europe. In 2021, Russia met more than a 1/3rd of European Union’s (E.U.) gas requirement.
However, after the West imposed sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine, Russia slashed natural gas shipments through Nord Stream to Europe in June 2022, halting gas supplies to Finland, Poland, Bulgaria and others. Due to annual maintenance, Russia said it is also planning to pause gas supplies to Germany in mid-July 2022.
The Executive Director of IEA – Fatih Birol had tweeted,
Russia's recent steep cuts in natural gas flows to the EU mean this is the 1st month in history in which the EU has imported more gas via LNG from the US than via pipeline from Russia
— Fatih Birol (@fbirol) June 30, 2022
The drop in Russian supply calls for efforts to reduce EU demand to prepare for a tough winter pic.twitter.com/YmjvRN39ND
In 2021, Russia was the third-biggest supplier of LNG to Europe, after the U.S. and Qatar and ahead of Algeria. Besides, the E.U. has already started seeking alternatives for reducing dependency on Russian gas. In March 2022, the E.U. agreed on an additional 15 billion cubic meters of U.S. LNG year to displace Russian gas. The increase in U.S. LNG imports comes as the nation ramps up output of the super-chilled fuel after starting exports from the Gulf Coast in 2016, transforming global energy trade.
The E.U. is also preparing an emergency plan to help Member States cut back on Russian energy. The new measures, due by mid-July 2022, will build on May’s REPowerEU plan to abandon Russian energy sources.
In other developments, the President of Belarus – Alexander Lukashenko has said that his military has shot down missiles fired at his country from Ukraine and promised to respond instantly to any attack from Ukraine. The claim came 1 week after Ukraine said missiles struck a border region from Belarus.
Lukashenko denied any involvement in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, reiterating that there were no troops from his country fighting in what Moscow calls its special military operation. However, Russia has been attacking Ukraine from Belarus.
The President of Ukraine – Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for international aid to help rebuild his devastated country once the war is over, sounding a rare hopeful note after four months of brutal conflict.
He added that Ukraine needs to create a new foundation which is safe, modern, comfortable, and accessible. This would require colossal investments, billions, new technologies, best practices, new institutions and reforms.
