Biden and Von der Leyen guarantee Ukraine’s energy security and its integration into European markets

MADRID, Jan. 28 (Royals Blue) –

The president of the United States, Joe Biden, and the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, expressed this Friday their support for Europe’s energy security in the midst of an escalation of tension with Russia due to its accumulation of troops on the border with Ukraine and have set themselves the goal of ensuring the “progressive integration” of this country in the gas and electricity markets of the European Union.

“The United States and the European Union are working together to provide a consistent, sufficient and timely supply of natural gas to the EU from a variety of sources around the world to avoid supply outages, including those that could result from a Russian invasion of Ukraine,” both leaders made known in a statement published this Friday.

Similarly, both have agreed that the “current security challenges” do nothing but underline the mutual “commitment” to accelerate the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy and “achievement” of the environmental objectives set out in the Paris Agreements.

The escalation of tension in Ukraine has unleashed panic over possible cuts in the supply of gas to Europe from Russia and which passes through Ukrainian territory. That is why, according to Biden and Von der Leyen, both the European Union and the United States “share the objective of guaranteeing Ukraine’s energy security and its progressive integration with the EU’s energy markets.”

“We are committed to intensifying our strategic energy cooperation for security of supply and will work together to make a reliable and affordable energy supply available to citizens and businesses in the EU and its neighbors,” Biden said.

The United States assures that it is collaborating with governments and market operators in the supply of additional volumes of natural gas to Europe. “The European Commission will work”, in this sense, “to improve transparency and the use of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals in the EU”, according to the note.

“We call on all major energy-producing countries to join us in ensuring that world energy markets are stable and well-supplied,” according to the statement, which advances further talks on this issue during the meeting, on February 7, of the US-EU Energy Council.