The Russian leader said gas could still be supplied by one remaining intact part of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The ball was in the EU’s court on whether it wanted gas supplied via the pipeline, he said.

Putin said, “Russia is ready to start such supplies. The ball is in the court of the EU. If they want, they can just open the tap.”

He went on to say that Russia has nothing to do with the sky-high energy prices that Europeans are facing this winter, instead blaming the West for stoking a global energy crisis, The Guardian reported.

It was the poorest countries that would pay the highest price in terms of rising energy costs, Putin added.

Those who benefit the most from the damage caused to the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea are the ones responsible for it, Russian President Vladmir Putin has said, RT reported.

“Everybody understands who is behind this and who is the beneficiary. One can now force the liquefied natural gas from the US on to European countries on a much larger scale,” Putin said in a speech at the Russian Energy Week forum in Moscow on Wednesday.

The President pointed out that US liquefied natural gas (LNG) is “definitely less competitive than Russian pipeline gas” due its higher price.

“Who stands behind the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines? Obviously, those who are looking to completely sever the ties between Russia and the EU, undermine Europe’s political sovereignty, weaken its industrial capacity and gain control of its markets,” the President said, RT reported.

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