REUTERS
The work of Ukraine's pipeline is reliable.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman says Russia plans to "destroy" the independent Ukrainian gas transport system by building Nord Stream 2 and make all European consumers dependent.
"The construction of Nord Stream 2 is designed to destroy the independent gas transportation system of Ukraine, to build a new system worth billions of dollars with a capacity that will be several times lower [than that of the Ukrainian gas transportation system] and to make all European consumers dependent. There is no other goal. This is not a business project. This is an attempt to make Europeans dependent," the Ukrainian government's press service quoted Groysman as saying.
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The Ukrainian gas transport system (GTS) operates reliably and is politically independent, he said.
"It [GTS] is politically independent of Russia and is friendly to European consumers," Groysman added. According to the prime minister, joint management of the Ukrainian gas transportation system will guarantee independence and reliable gas transit shipments to Europe.
UNIAN memo. The Nord Stream 2 project foresees the construction of two pipelines whose total capacity will be 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year. It will run from Russia's coast, across the Baltic Sea and farther to Germany. The construction is to start in 2018 and is expected to be over by the end of 2019.