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EU energy commissioner fearing Russia may use nat gas as weapon

BRUSSELS, September 25. /ITAR-TASS/. EU’s outgoing energy commissioner Guenther Oettinger said in a speech at a meeting of the EU energy committee on Thursday he felt Russia might stop deliveries of natural gas to Ukraine.

A report placed on the EU’s official website said Oettinger said in his opening speech that many people were thinking relations with Russia were more important in the field of energy than relations with Ukraine but “we have to overcome this.”

“Gas can be used as a weapon and no longer be delivered,” Oettinger said.

“This is not yet the case, but we believe that Russia will do whatever they can to undermine Ukraine.”

“Perhaps Ukraine could purchase gas from Russia with co-finance from the EU in order to store more gas,” he added.

Oettinger also called for more collaboration in the energy sector. He noted the availability of legal groundwork for joint efforts on energy issues but said the problem was that “we now have 28 fragmented systems.”

A number of MEPs voiced solidarity with his viewpoint that the EU was to do more to surmount this fragmentation and to interconnect the energy sector of countries within the EU.

The commissioner also pleaded for more collaboration on energy. The EU already has a legal basis to work on energy issues, but "we now have 28 fragmented systems", he said. Several MEPs shared his view that more should be done to combat this fragmentation and to link the energy sectors of countries within the EU.