Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday signalled openness to allowing the transit of non-Russian gas through his country to Central Europe.
If a receiving country was able to guarantee that the gas is not of Russian origin and that Moscow is not profiting from the fuel, then there is a possibility to allow transits after the end of the year, Zelensky said.
A pre-war agreement between Russian and Ukrainian energy companies on transiting Russian gas through Ukraine’s pipeline system to the European Union will not be renewed at the end of the month as Kiev is determined to further clamp down on lucrative Russian energy exports, he reiterated.
“We will not prolong the transit of Russian gas,” he said after attending an EU leaders’ summit in Brussels as a guest.
Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia are the EU countries impacted by the end of the Russian-Ukrainian transit agreement, according to the European Commission.
Zelensky said he discussed the issue with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico in Brussels who shared concerns about rising energy costs.
The Ukrainian president responded that Ukraine was losing people due to Moscow’s war, as well as money.
Russian President Vladimir Putin criticised the end of the transit agreement in his annual press conference on Thursday.
“Ukraine is cutting off our gas for consumers in Europe,” Putin said.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a press conference on the sidelines of the European Council summit. Francois Lenoir/European Council/dpa
