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Armen Oganesyan
, Editor-in-Chief of International Af-
fairs: Today, we will discuss the Ukrainian crisis and its im-
pact on the Russian energy sector. A good deal can be said
about that, but it would be desirable if, in analyzing this sit-
uation, we would not digress into topics that before long
will evidently become irrelevant. Let us look at the situation
globally, strategically, in conjunction with geopolitics. Yuri
Konstantinovich, you are welcome.
Yuri Shafranik
, Chairman of the Council of the Union of
Russian Oil and Gas Producers: As far as oil is concerned,
the agreement was implemented within quite a short period.
With respect to natural gas, things turned out quite differ-
ently. From the very start, at the request of the Ukrainian
side, we made concessions, granting preferential terms.
And so we have been renegotiating the deal for 20 years
now. Ukraine has been using blackmail tactics, threatening
us with unsanctioned siphoning off of gas and undersup-
plying it to Europe. That is one side of the matter.
Another side is the position of Europe. Russia has repeatedly proposed different options for resolv-
ing the problem of gas transit via Ukraine - from creating a unified gas transportation network to
putting the pipeline under the full control of European states. No, the pipeline is still only Ukrainian.
And they are allowed to steal and blackmail.
However, it would be wrong to say that Europe is not thinking about its energy security. Various
options are provided for in the event of irregular gas supplies from Russia. This includes the im-
provement of interconnections between the gas transportation systems of European states. This is
a serious and challenging task for Europe.
And there is yet another topic that, in my opinion, is being addressed too emotionally. This refers to
hypothetical supplies of U.S. shale gas to Europe. It is important to understand that new sources
are appearing and will continue to appear on the natural gas market - be it in Africa, Australia,
Malaysia or Iran. God grant this situation continues. As for challenges on the natural gas market,
they are constantly arising. So, in order not to fall by the wayside, we need to watch these processes,
conduct serious analytical work, and anticipate possible scenarios at least for the next 25 years.
Is the Ukrainian Crisis an Energy Challenge to Russia?