US steps in as Russians shut off gas tap to Europe

The United States will supply more liquefied gas to Europe if necessary to compensate for the drop in Russian gas supply. Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign affairs coordinator, reached agreements on this subject on Monday with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Russia normally supplies 40% of Europe’s gas needs, but has supplied less than usual in recent months. In Europe, it is believed to be linked to the conflict between Russia and the West over Ukraine, although state-owned Gazprom contradicts this.

If it is a Russian invasion of Ukraine, it will lead to economic sanctions and a likely countermeasure is that Russia will completely turn off the gas tap. With the LNG (liquefied natural gas) agreements, the EU and the US anticipate this scenario, according to a joint statement after the consultation round.

Europe is also in talks with Norway, Qatar and Azerbaijan over additional gas supplies. The latter country has already shown its willingness to help in the event of a major gas supply disruption, European energy coordinator Kadri Simson said last week.