A worker at the gas compressor station of the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline. Archival photoBRUSSELS, Feb. 9 The European Union today is not able to completely replace the Russian «blue fuel», it does not have many opportunities and significantly increase the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG), said in an interview with RIA News Permanent Representative of Russia to the European Union Vladimir Chizhov. The European Commission is discussing with the US and a number of other countries the possibility of expanding LNG supplies to the EU. However, the States «cannot» supply gas in volumes that would cover all the needs of the union, Chizhov said.Chizhov called a condition for increasing gas supplies to Europe «In addition, the gas sector in the United States has been privatized. When prices are higher in Asia, LNG goes there. As was the case last year, when not so much American liquefied gas reached Europe,» he added Chizhov also noted that LNG supplies from Qatar and some other countries are contracted «for years to come.» Therefore, he believes that, «of course», the EU does not have many opportunities to significantly increase LNG imports. «Today, the European Union is physically unable to completely replace our gas. It will really be easier for him to immediately switch to firewood, spitting on all his» green «principles,» he said. The European Union does not exclude new sanctions against Russia in view of the situation around Ukraine, therefore it is preparing for hypothetical retaliatory restrictive measures, including monitoring the energy market, a high-ranking official in the European Commission said at the end of January. Against this background, the EC is assessing scenarios for interruptions in Russian gas supplies, he added. The European Union is in contact with the United States, Norway, Qatar, Azerbaijan, Algeria and other countries regarding the expansion of LNG supplies, EU diplomat Josep Borrell said later. The plans attributed to Russia to escalate the situation around Ukraine in Moscow are categorically denied and constantly declare that they are not threatening anyone and are not going to attack anyone, and all such statements are used as an excuse to place more NATO military equipment near Russian borders. As Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier, Russia does not create any pretexts for a conflict situation around Ukraine. According to him, Russia does not rule out that the hysteria around Ukraine, hyped by the West, is aimed at covering Kiev's line of sabotaging the Minsk agreements on Donbass. According to the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov, the information hysteria of the USA and NATO on Ukraine is generously framed by lies and fakes. indispensable for gas supplies to Europe
