Russia on Wednesday suspended supplies of natural gas to Bulgaria and Poland, countries that refused to pay for the commodity in rubles.
It is the first time since the war in Ukraine began on February 24 that Moscow has halted gas supplies to EU member states.
The announcement was made by Russia’s stateowned Gazprom and confirmed by the Bulgarian and Polish governments. According to the company, the flow of gas will be suspended until the two countries make payments in rubles.
The requirement to use Russian currency in natural gas transactions is a measure taken by Vladimir Putin’s regime to counter European Union sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking to lawmakers on Wednesday, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said cutting off gas supplies was another move by Russia’s “imperialism” and a “direct attack” on the country.
“We will take a pistol on this blackmail without the Poles noticing,” said the prime minister, adding that Poland has enough gas supplies for a month and a half “or more”.
Bulgaria claims to have stocks for at least a month. “This onesided blackmail is unacceptable,” said Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. The country also pledged to review its contracts with Gazprom for natural gas transit to Hungary and Serbia, countries with proRussian governments.
For her part, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen assured that the bloc was “prepared for this scenario”. “We outline our coordinated response in the EU. Europeans can trust that we are united and in solidarity with the Member States concerned,” said the German on Twitter.
According to Von der Leyen, Bulgaria and Poland will also receive gas from their neighbors in the block. “First of all, this shows the solidarity between the member states,” affirmed the President at a press conference in Brussels.
The European Union refuses to pay for Russian gas in rubles and has already worked to reduce its dependence on Moscow, including an agreement to increase US imports. For now, other EU countries like Austria and Italy have already reported that there have been no cuts in gas supplies due to nonpayment in rubles.
Russia Amid the controversy, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the blockade would be extended to other countries that don’t want to pay for natural gas in Russian currency.
“If payment deadlines approach and one of the consumer countries refuses to pay through the new system, President Vladimir Putin’s decree will be enforced,” he threatened.
In addition, Peskov said the move was in response to the European Union’s “hostile actions” against Moscow.