Russia cuts off gas supply to Poland, Bulgaria; Ukraine calls it 'blackmail of Europe'

In the latest development in the Russia-Ukraine war, Poland and Bulgaria claimed on Tuesday that Russia has decided to halt natural gas delivery to their nations after they refused to pay for the supply in Russian rubles. In an evident warning shot to the rest of the European nations, Moscow has informed Poland and Bulgaria that gas supplies would be cut off as of Wednesday, April 27, due to their unwillingness to pay Russian energy giant 'Gazprom' in roubles.

Following the announcement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, stated that Russia was "beginning the gas blackmail of Europe".

Yermak went on to say, “Russia is trying to shatter the unity of our allies. Russia is also proving that energy resources are a weapon. That is why the EU needs to be united and impose an embargo on energy resources, depriving the Russians of their energy weapons,” the Guardian reported.

These suspensions of Russian natural gas supply to the two European Union and NATO members are the first since Russian President Vladimir Putin announced last month that "unfriendly" foreign importers would have to pay Gazprom in rubles rather than dollars or euros. Except for Hungary, no country has agreed to pay in rubles.

If Gazprom stops supplying natural gas to other nations, it might hurt Europe's economy

According to an Associated Press report, if Gazprom stops supplying other nations, it might hurt Europe's economy by rising gas prices and potentially forcing rationing. Due to its reliance on Russian gas, Germany is particularly susceptible. Cutoffs would, nevertheless, have a negative impact on Russia's economy as well. 

Furthermore, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Poland has been a staunch defender of the neighbouring war-torn country. PGNiG, Poland's largest gas provider, said that it will sue Gazprom for violation of the contract. In addition to this, Mateusz Morawiecki, Poland's prime minister, has previously stated that by the end of this year, he expected to block Russian oil and gas imports, and there has been an effort to diversify to compensate for losses. 

Despite the fact that Russia presently supplies roughly 55% of Poland's yearly gas consumption of over 21 billion cubic metres (bcm), the country's government continues to press the European Union and other western partners to do more to punish the Kremlin, the Guardian reported.

Later, on April 26, the energy ministry of Bulgaria stated that Russian gas supplies through the TurkStream pipeline will be cut off on Wednesday as well. Bulgaria, which was a close ally of Moscow, has terminated many of its connections with Russia, backing new sanctions against Russia and assisting Ukraine with humanitarian supplies. The Balkan country imports over 90% of its gas requirements but the administration has stated that there would be no limitations on domestic gas usage.

Since Russia attacked Ukraine two months ago, the EU has contributed over €41 billion to Russia in fossil fuel payments, according to the NGO Europe Beyond Coal. Despite this, the European Commission has stated that enterprises should continue to pay Gazprom in the currency specified in their contracts, and roughly 97% of those are in either euros or dollars.

(Image: AP)