Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that “assistance to Ukraine is a moral duty, but we pay for this to his economy,” noting that “if Russian President Vladimir Putin stops the supply of gas to Europe, we will need a joint answer.”

Earlier, the Russian authorities closed the North Stream-1 gas pipeline to Europe for preventive work from July 11 to 21. This measure coincides with fears in the European market that this will aggravate gas deficit in Europe.

And the news agency confirmed: “If the gas volumes arriving by Nord Stream-1 will not be pumped alternatively, Europe can wait for a sharp increase in prices for“ blue fuel ”, adding that“ it is impossible to replace the entire volume ”. Since Ukraine limited the flow of Russian gas in transit due to force majeure, Russian counter-sanctions also prohibit the use of Yamala-Europe through Poland.

Some countries, including Germany and Austria, have expressed fears that “the pipeline supplies after completion of work may decrease or stop.”