Belgium says it intends to continue LNG imports from Russia after restrictions
The Belgian authorities intend to continue importing Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) even after the restrictions against it within the framework of the 14th package of sanctions of the European Union (EU) come into force at the end of March. The country's Energy Minister Tinne van der Straten said on January 29.
"This package prohibits the transshipment of Russian LNG in EU ports, except for transshipment to meet the needs of member states," RIA Novosti quoted the minister as saying at a hearing in parliament .
She added that the EU sanctions are quite complex, so Belgium had to adopt an additional regulation at the national level. One of its points is a mandatory declaration for LNG carriers using the Belgian terminal. Van der Straten explained that in order to transload gas for the benefit of EU members, it will be necessary to justify its necessity for the community's energy security. If the declaration is not credible, access to the Belgian port will be denied.
"Although imports of Russian LNG are declining, it is still present. It is diverted to different destinations to different facilities," the minister pointed out.
She also specified that in particular Germany, although it does not buy fuel directly from Russia, continues to receive it through Belgium, where Russian gas is supplied under existing contracts.
Earlier, on January 27, Bloomberg reported that the European Commission (EC), with a certain degree of probability, will postpone for a month later the official publication of the "roadmap", which will outline a plan for EU countries with specific measures that they need to take to completely abandon the import of fuel from Russia, including LNG. It was noted that instead of the end of February, as planned, the EC may present its plan on March 26.
On the same day, the head of EU diplomacy Kaja Kallas officially confirmed the extension of anti-Russian sanctions by six months.
On January 1, 2025, Gazprom announced the suspension of Russian gas supplies to the EU via Ukraine. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fitzo said that this would have drastic consequences for the EU, but not for Russia.
At the end of August 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (his term expired on May 20, 2024) said that the country would not renew its gas transit agreement with Russia, which expired at the end of 2024. Russian President Vladimir Putin later pointed out that Moscow did not refuse to transit gas through Ukraine.
