On Tuesday 6 March, the chair of the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee, David McAllister (EPP, Germany), the chair of the European Parliament's delegation to the EU-Ukraine parliamentary association committee, Dariusz Rosati (EPP, Poland), and the European Parliament's rapporteur on Ukraine, Michael Gahler (EPP, Germany), spoke out against an "instrumentalisation" of gas supplies by Russia.
"We are deeply concerned about the decision taken by Gazprom on 1 March 2018 to stop supplying pre-paid gas to Ukraine, as well as about the following announcement of Gazprom's withdrawal from the contract with Naftogaz. This is yet another proof of the instrumentalisation of gas supplies as a political tool of pressure by the Russian Federation", they said in a joint press release, adding that these decisions "might also impact the EU's energy security".
The three MEPs called on all parties "to agree to start as early as possible trilateral consultations in the EU-Ukraine-Russia format" and they welcomed the European Commission's willingness to play a mediating role (see EUROPE 11973). McAllister, Rosati and Gahler also called on the parties "to participate in good faith in these discussions, with a view to overcoming this tense situation". (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)