Ukraine is discussing the possibility of a political and economic agreement that could allow the transit of Russian gas in exchange for the return of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant.
Mykhailo Honchar, president of the Strategy XXI Centre, believes that Hungary and Slovakia, which are interested in supplying gas through Ukraine, may agree with Putin on this compromise.
In his opinion, such conditions could contribute to changes in the European Union’s policy, as countries such as Slovakia and Hungary continue to buy Russian gas, which allows Russia to manipulate their interests.
Ukraine receives only about $800 million a year from transit, while Russia earns up to $5.5 billion from sales.
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The European Union plans to stop the transit of Russian gas through the Ukrainian gas transmission system after the contract expires in December 2024.
However, experts warn that replacing Russian gas with supplies from Azerbaijan may not yield the expected results.
As a reminder, Azerbaijan is negotiating the expansion of natural gas exports to at least three more European countries, with exports possibly going through Ukraine.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that the country is already in talks with potential buyers. He also confirmed that Moscow and Kyiv have approached him with a proposal to facilitate the transit of gas through Ukraine to Europe when the key agreement expires in December.
Aliyev says he wants to support countries in Europe and Ukraine. He says Azerbaijan has some optimism and there are grounds for a diplomatic breakthrough.
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Author: Anastasia Fedor