After the start of the war against Ukraine, Russia openly threatened to stop gas supplies through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline in the Baltic Sea for the first time.
“We have every right to make a ‘mirror-fair’ decision and to issue an embargo on the transit of gas through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which today has a maximum capacity of 100 percent,” said Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Nowak ( 50) in a speech broadcast on state television Monday night.
This means that the Russian government sees the threat as a tit-for-tat for stopping the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
Vice Prime Minister Nowak continued: “But we are not yet making this decision. Nobody wins from it.” However, Russia now sees itself pushed in this direction by European politicians and their accusations.
The federal government had put Nord Stream 2 on hold after Russian soldiers invaded Ukraine on February 24 at the behest of Kremlin tyrant Vladimir Putin (69).
Russia’s rulers know very well that they are hitting Germany in a sensitive area with the threatened gas freeze. A few hours earlier, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (63, SPD) had emphasized how important Russian energy supplies were.
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“There is currently no other way to secure Europe’s supply of energy for heat generation, for mobility, for power supply and for industry,” said Scholz on Monday. The energy supply is therefore “of essential importance for services of general interest and the daily life of our citizens”.
Europe “deliberately” exempted energy supplies from Russia from sanctions, explained Scholz. “All our steps are designed in such a way that they hit Russia hard and are sustainable in the long term.”
Italy meanwhile pushed ahead more aggressively: By the middle of the year, his country wants to replace half of the current gas imports from Russia with other sources, said Environment Minister Roberto Cingolani (60) on Italian television.