Central European gas hub in Baumgarten. File photoMOSCOW, Jul 30 Europeans may abandon the idea of supporting Ukraine if the European Commission's plan to reduce gas consumption by 15 percent is implemented, retired British lieutenant general Simon Mayall told Times Radio. in his opinion, under such circumstances, the Europeans will begin to doubt the effectiveness of Western sanctions against Moscow.
"This will have a direct impact on voters, citizens and those people who follow the consequences of Russian actions and, of course, Western sanctions against Moscow. And one can imagine that some will begin to doubt whether we should take part in all this and support the Ukrainians, given that we may have problems with the supply of grain", Mayall said.
The British soldier also ruled out the possibility of a direct military conflict involving Russia and NATO. On July 20, the European Commission proposed new measures to reduce demand for gas. Initially, a 15 percent voluntary reduction in consumption by all Member States is envisaged from 1 August to 31 March 2023. This corresponds to 45 billion cubic meters of gas. Some countries, including Hungary, Portugal, Spain and Greece opposed the proposal. The head of the Hungarian Foreign Ministry, Peter Szijjártó, called it practically unfeasible.