This was stated by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Jeffrey Payette, as reported by RBK-Ukraine citing his interview with "Voice of America". This information comes from Kontrakty.UA.
"I truly hope for this," he remarked.
Commenting on the pressure on Ukraine to extend the contract for the transit of Russian gas, Payette noted that "it is important that the pressure comes from only one or two countries, and the signal from the European Commission is very clear."
The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State welcomed the statement from European Commissioner for Energy, Dan Jørgensen, regarding the rejection of Russian gas and the commitment of the newly appointed European Commissioner to gradually eliminate dependence in the gas and nuclear sectors, as well as all forms of reliance on Russian energy resources, aiming for zero supplies from Russia by 2027.
The American official sees no reason to continue an agreement that has allowed Russia to exert influence over Ukraine for many years.
"Trade in energy resources, especially gas, has been the primary vector of Russia's influence on the Ukrainian economy since independence. So why, for heaven's sake, would anyone be interested in continuing these relations?" Payette expressed his astonishment.
In order to continue limiting Russia's ability to use revenue from energy resource sales to fund the war, the U.S. and its allies will increase sanctions, Payette assured.
Attempts by Putin's allies to extend transit
The contract between Ukraine and Russia for gas transit expires on January 1, 2025. Europe has already taken steps to prepare for the cessation of transit. The share of Russian gas in Europe has fallen to 6%, while the share of Russian gas flowing through Ukraine has dropped to 4%.
Slovakia and Hungary are making state-level efforts to encourage Ukraine to continue the transit of Russian gas. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico discussed this by phone with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. Fico stated that his country is engaged in "very intensive" negotiations to ensure that Ukraine continues the transit of Russian gas in 2025.
Shmyhal dismissed the possibility of extending the agreement with "Gazprom". However, he stated: "If the European Commission officially approaches Ukraine regarding the transit of any gas other than Russian, we will certainly discuss this and are ready to reach an appropriate agreement based on the principles of energy security for both the entire EU and each European nation."
On Tuesday, several companies from Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, and Italy sent a letter to the European Commission complaining that the end of the agreement "will lead to increased prices for consumers in Europe" and "complicate gas supply."
European Commissioner for Energy Dan Jørgensen announced that the EU is preparing for the conclusion of the contract. He stated that his main priority is to "completely sever the energy ties between the EU and Russia."