Germany accuses United States of soaring gas exports prices.
Germany’s economy minister has criticized the United States for charging too high prices for its gas exports to the country, which is trying to wean itself off Russian gas supplies.
“Certain countries, including friendly countries, sometimes reach astronomical prices,” said Robert Habeck of the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung”.
“Of course, this leads to problems that we have to talk about,” he added.
German industry cut its gas consumption by nearly a fifth last month, after a plunge in Russian gas exports sparked a continent-wide energy crisis that led to soaring energy prices, sustainability experts of the Hertie School said. https://t.co/rFFZJXfq5l
— Vera Eckert (@EckertVera) November 1, 2022
Early last month, Russia said gas supplies to Europe via the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline would not fully resume until Western countries reached a common decision and sanctions were lifted.
In making the announcement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov blamed sanctions from the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Canada for Russia’s failure to deliver gas through the vital pipeline.
He said the sanctions created a “pumping problem” by preventing pipeline units from being properly maintained. The Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines link Russia and Europe across the Baltic Sea.
Later in September, pipelines were plagued with unexplained leaks. Moscow has again given the responsibility to the West and its sanctions, with Peskov saying: “It is the collective West – in this case, the European Union, Canada, and Great Britain – that are responsible for the situation that comes to this point”.
Russia has either curbed or reduced its gas exports to the rest of Europe in protest against sanctions imposed by the continent on Moscow for its ongoing military operation in Ukraine in February.
