Russia Seeks to Maintain ‘Energy Bridge’ to the West

Russia denied Friday that its temporary cutoff of natural gas to Ukraine last week in a pricing dispute raised doubts about its ability to act as a responsible energy supplier to Europe. But a Foreign Ministry official acknowledged that there were “certainly … political factors” in Moscow’s aim to maintain a strategic route for transporting gas to Western Europe.

“In areas where economic interests coincide with objective national interests, certainly the issue of politics comes into play,” Alexei Sazonov, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, said in an interview. “Those who know Russia’s current economy understand that without this energy bridge [through Ukraine to Europe], Russia will not be able to fuel the further growth and development of its economy.”

..The $47 per 1,000 cubic meters Belarus still pays for Russian gas — about half of the $95 Ukraine will now end up paying — is thanks not only to President Alexander G. Lukashenko’s friendly relations with Moscow, but also to the fact that Russia has 100% ownership of the pipeline that transports Russian gas through the country to Western Europe.

Los Angeles Times