U.S., EU Firm Up Liquefied Natural Gas Deal To Punish Russia

The United States and European Union (EU) on Friday announced a new partnership to reduce the continent’s reliance on Russian energy, the start of a years-long initiative to further isolate Russia, Reuters reported.

Photo Insert: The agreement will see the US provide the EU with around 10% of the gas it currently gets from Russia by the end of the year.

The US will work to supply 15 billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas to the EU this year to help wean it off Russian gas supplies, the transatlantic partners said. The EU is aiming to cut its dependency on Russian gas by two-thirds this year and end all Russian fossil fuel imports by 2027, the Associated Press (AP) added.

The agreement will see the US provide the EU with around 10% of the gas it currently gets from Russia by the end of the year. The bloc has already said it will cut Russian gas use in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Russia currently supplies about 40% of the EU's gas needs.

The new deal will involve the US and other countries supplying an extra 15 billion cubic meters of gas on top of last year's 22 billion cubic meters. The new total will represent around 24% of the gas currently imported from Russia. The eventual aim is for the US and international partners to provide about 50 billion cubic meters per year to the EU.

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