BRUSSELS, March 4. /TASS/. The European Commission (EC) intends to reduce LNG imports from Russia after transit of Russian pipeline gas via Ukraine stops on December 31, 2024, EU energy commissioner Kadri Simson told reporters.

"We will discuss the gas market outlook, also the impact of the end of Russian gas transit via Ukraine," she said. "I hope that there will be a good discussion how to further reduce Russian LNG imports to European countries," Simson added.

"I have been very clear and I have repeatedly confirmed the message to our Ukrainian counterparts that the European Commission will not engage with Russia in the way it did five years ago when the trilateral gas transit agreement was agreed on. On the contrary, according to our RePowerEU plan, we have to get rid of Russian gas at the latest in 2027. That means that we are working intensively to provide landlocked countries with alternative supply routes and alternative suppliers, and we are supporting Ukraine so that Ukraine can be better integrated with the EU energy market," she explained.

According to European experts’ estimates, after the EU abandoned purchases of Russian pipeline gas in 2022 EU countries boosted sharply Russian LNG purchases, which have climbed by 40% since then.