BERLIN, August 28 (RIA Novosti) – The Russian gas sector should be exempt from the EU sanctions against Russia, EU Energy Chief Gunther Oettinger said Thursday.
“Gas is not the correct sector for sanctions because only losers would remain: Russia, Ukraine and the European Union,” Oettinger said.
Russia, Ukraine and the European Union are going to participate in a new round of talks on energy issues on September 6.
Previous several rounds of trilateral talks took place from mid-April to June to no avail.
On Wednesday, Russian business daily Kommersant reported that Russian oil company Gazprom Neft has agreed to export 80,000 tons of oil from the Novoportovskoye field to Europe, accepting payment in rubles.
According to the paper, Russia’s decision to avoid dollar payments, which can be tracked and controlled by the US government, is a protective measure.
Back in March, in response to Crimea’s reunification with Russia, the United States and the European Union introduced a package of targeted sanctions against Russia.
As the Ukrainian crisis escalated, the United States introduced several new rounds of sanctions targeting Russia’s defense, energy and banking sectors, and persuaded its allies to add Russian individuals and entities to their own blacklists.
