Kremlin: gas supplies to Europe cut due to Western sanctions

Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said today that it is the West’s fault that gas deliveries cannot take place through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline.

The Russian added that the full resumption of gas supplies by Russia through Nord Stream 1 “undoubtedly” depends on whether the West lifts its sanctions against Moscow. ,”It is the sanctions from the West that have brought us to the situation we see now.”

The largest Russian energy supplier Gazprom announced Friday evening that the suspension of gas supplies in the western direction through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline would be extended indefinitely, due to “defects” of a turbine along the pipeline. According to Gazprom, the Russian authorities have now determined that the shut-down gas compressor is dangerous. The state gas company is now also talking about a construction defect in the compressor built by Siemens.

Gazprom has also blamed Western sanctions for the interruption of gas supplies, and has said that manufacturer Siemens could not carry out repairs to the turbines used in Nord Stream 1 due to sanctions against the Russian state energy company. The EU has rejected Gazprom’s claims and accused Putin of using its gas exports as a weapon.

Nord Stream 1 is the largest gas pipeline from Russia to Europe and has a capacity of 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year. The continuation of supplies through the pipeline is considered crucial in order to avoid a deepening of the energy crisis. The energy crisis in Europe, caused by lower Russian gas flows, is therefore seen as an important test for Western support for Ukraine.

According to analysts, Russia hopes that record energy prices and imminent food shortages this winter will push Europe to push Ukraine towards surrender. Russia would do this because the military targets are not being met in Ukraine for the time being.

Russian officials like to point to growing anger in the EU over rising prices, with Peskov saying today it was clear that life was “getting worse for people, businessmen and businesses in Europe.”

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