EU official claims bloc has plan to replace Russia gas; here's what Brussels intends to do

The European Union Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, on Sunday, June 5, said that the EU has created a plan to replace Russian gas. Breton informed that the EU imports 155 billion cubic meters a year from Russia, DW reported citing Europe 1 radio. According to Thierry Breton, Brussels intends to produce 50 billion cubic meters by importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States or Qatar. In addition, Brussels will be able to get 10 billion cubic meters of LNG through existing pipelines and additional 25 billion cubic meters from accelerated offshore wind turbines and photovoltaic panels.

Breton further said that Russia's President Vladimir Putin makes use of gas to "divide" Europe, as per the DW report. He accused Putin of making every effort to divide Europe. According to Breton, the Kremlin leader tried to separate European nations through the Sputnik vaccine and stressed that he was not successful in separating them. Thierry Breton underscored that Putin even made every effort to intervene in their democracies. The statement of the EU Commissioner for the Internal Market comes as the European Union continues to impose sanctions against Russia over its military offensive in Ukraine. It is pertinent to note here that the war between Russia and Ukraine has crossed 100 days. 

EU adopts sixth package of sanctions against Russia 

In response to the Russian offensive in Ukraine, the European Union adopted the sixth package of sanctions against Russia and Belarus on June 3. In the sixth package of sanctions, the EU banned the purchase, import or transfer of crude oil and refined petroleum products from Russia into the EU. In addition, a SWIFT ban has been announced for an additional three Russian and one Belarusian banks. Furthermore, the EU Council announced the suspension of broadcasting of three more Russian state-owned outlets - Rossiya RTR / RTR Planeta, Rossiya 24 / Russia 24 and TV Centre International in the EU. Moreover, the EU has decided to impose sanctions against 18 entities and 65 individuals. According to the statement released by the EU, the people and entities in the latest package of sanctions include people responsible for the atrocities committed in Bucha and Mariupol. 

Image: AP