Zakharova spoke about the EU's plans to achieve a reduction in gas supplies from Russia

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova has called the rejection of Russian energy resources the main goal of the European Union's (EU) energy strategy. The diplomat said this in an interview with RIA Novosti on September 23 .

"Now they openly say in Brussels that the main goal of the energy strategy promoted in the EU is the rejection of Russian energy carriers and undermining the potential of the domestic fuel and energy complex," she said, noting that in this way the West is trying to inflict economic damage on Russia.

The diplomat also noted that the EU wants to achieve a reduction in Russian gas supplies.

"How they want to achieve this in Brussels is generally clear. By continuing to increase supplies from across the ocean and further reducing gas consumption," Zakharova emphasized.

According to her, the European Commission has already reported on a host of projects to build and expand liquefied natural gas terminals launched from 2022 to 2024. This could help increase the EU's capacity to import this fuel by the end of this year.

Prior to that, on September 18, Igor Yushkov, a leading analyst at the National Energy Security Fund and an expert at the Financial University under the Government of Russia, said that there are many more buyers of Russian gas in Europe than formal recipients. For example, Bulgaria, which back in 2022 refused to buy from Gazprom, continues to buy Russian gas through intermediaries.

On September 5, Sergey Tereshkin, general director of the Open Oil Market, a marketplace for oil products and raw materials, told Izvestia that the growth of gas supplies to Europe ensured an increase in gas industry fees in Russia. He suggested that the increase in mineral extraction tax and export duty on gas will continue in the coming months.