“The end of the big scam. Ukraine stops the transit of Russian gas — why it is too early to put an end to this story December 25, 11:17 NV Premium Share: Lana Zerkal in her office. She works. (Photo: NVOlexandr Medvedev) Author: Oleksandr Pashover The energy security of Ukraine and even Europe depends on whether Kyiv can withstand the pressure of pro-Russian stakeholders, who are tempted by the Kremlin’s crazy money. Interview with Lana Zerkal”, — write on: ua.news
Lana Zerkal in her office. She works. (Photo: NVAlexander Medvedev)
The energy security of Ukraine and even Europe depends on whether Kyiv can withstand the pressure of pro-Russian interests, who are tempted by the Kremlin’s crazy money. Interview with Lana Zerkal, member of the UAFP coordination board.
Moscow spent a lot of energy, billions of dollars, to set up an energy trap for the EU. For many years, Gazprom controlled a third of the gas market of the old continent. What helped the Kremlin to manually control the price, threaten to freeze the cities there, bleed the European economy. But for now, this tyrannical project of at least 50 years is coming to an end.
From January 1, 2025, the penultimate pipe pumping Russian gas to Europe will be closed. Other Yamal-Europe routes “Nord Streams 1 and 2″ through the Baltic Sea, stopped functioning earlier. There are still Russian gas pipeline routes to Europe — Blue Stream and Turkish Stream. But by 2027, the EU plans to zero out its imports of Russian gas. However, there is one but in all these plans.
Even three: 1. Roberto Fico, prime minister of Slovakia, 2. Viktor Orban, prime minister of Hungary, 3. Denys Shmyhal, head of the Ukrainian government. The first two are pressuring, and in some places blackmailing, Ukraine to extend the gas contract to Kyiv, for which Bratislava and Budapest do not neglect trips to pay homage to their master, the Kremlin. Their Ukrainian colleague, Shmyhal, firmly adheres to the position of “away from Moscow”, but declares the possibility of replacing Russian gas with Azerbaijani gas in transit.
According to Lana Zerkal, a member of the coordination board of the Ukraine Facility platform (UAFP) in this context, it can only be a question of a gray scheme, where Russian gas, marked as Azerbaijani, will pass through an intermediary company in the usual way for Gazprom.
This story reminded her of the biggest gas scam in the history of Ukraine, which even non-old-timers remember under its name RosUkrEnergo. The infamous gas resale agent in 2004-2009, in which the interests of the Ukrainian oligarchy, Russian criminality and the political elite of both countries converged. And now “we can repeat” played with new colors. NV journalist talked to Lana Zerkal about this, as well as about German naivety, French composure, Russian audacity, Ukrainian stubbornness in sensitive atomic energy, starting with a ritual question:
— How was your day today?
– Good. They shot a little. But nothing fell. So good.
— In a few years we will remember this answer of yours as an example of the surrealism in which we lived.
— You are even more optimistic than I am when you say that in a few years we will remember this as something that has already ended.
Transit stops
— Well, we will return to this topic later. And now there is, so to speak, another informational excuse. In a week, a historic event will take place, the cessation of transit of Russian gas through Ukraine.