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Without Ukrainian transit, gas to become much more expensive for Europe — expert

According to Karin Kneissl, in some households, people are already paying more for electricity and heating than for their rent

ST. PETERSBURG, December 25. /TASS/. Gas prices in Europe will spike if Ukraine stops its transit of Russian gas, said Karin Kneissl, the former Foreign Minister of Austria and the head of the GORKI Center at St. Petersburg State University.

"I don’t think there will be a total absence of gas, because Europeans will have to buy the gas on the global market, but at higher prices. It will be much more expensive," she said when asked about the consequences of Ukraine’s potential halt of gas transit.

Speaking about the situation in Europe, she said that "now, in some households, people are already paying more for electricity and heating than for their rent."

In her opinion, many European governments have disregarded their energy security and are now facing consequences.

"Affordable energy is definitely an essential topic for many governments, and they totally neglected energy security. They were only interested in climate change policies, and they did not pay enough attention to affordable supply of reliable energy," Kneissl said.

Gas transit via Ukraine

On December 19, at a Q&A session along with his annual press conference with journalists, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that there will definitely be no contract for the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine. He noted that by refusing to extend the agreement, Kiev has created additional problems for European countries, whose support is vital for Ukraine’s existence.

The contract for the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine expires on December 31, 2024. Kiev has repeatedly stated that it does not intend to extend it. However, a number of Ukrainian and Western media outlets wrote that transit schemes are possible, under which European countries will buy gas from Russia even before it is sent to the consumer, so that formally it will no longer be Russian gas that will flow through Ukrainian territory. There have also been suggestions that a third country, such as Azerbaijan, could purchase gas from Russia in order to then supply it to Europe through Ukraine.

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