Belgian Energy Minister announces EU assistance to Ukraine to promote self-sufficiency
According to Tinne Van der Straeten, apart from the Ukrainian minister, the Moldovan energy minister and NATO representatives have also been invited to this meeting
BRUSSELS, April 15. /TASS/. The EU intends to transfer equipment to Ukraine so that the country can produce its own energy, Belgian Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten said upon her arrival at an informal meeting of EU energy ministers in Brussels.
"The EU will transfer equipment to Ukraine for [the purpose of] decentralizing energy generation. [Ukrainian Energy Minister German] Galushchenko will brief us on Ukraine's needs," she said.
According to her, apart from the Ukrainian minister, the Moldovan energy minister and NATO representatives have also been invited to this meeting.
The meeting, organized by Belgium's presidency in the EU Council, will not focus specifically on Ukraine. The talks are devoted to ensuring the energy independence of EU countries. The meeting is informal, so no official decisions are expected to come out of it.
On April 9, the European Commission announced that Austria, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden had already allocated 157 power generators of various capacities to Ukraine. In addition, the EC transferred ten high-capacity (1MW) power generators worth €3.57 mln to Kiev from its stockpiles. The European Commission noted that each generator is capable of powering a medium-sized hospital.