Energy war when the West controls Russia’s oil prices, Moscow closes gas pipelines According to Reuters

By Tom Balmforth

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (Reuters) – Federation countries on Friday agreed to try to cap global Russian oil prices, while Russia delayed the reopening of its main gas pipeline to Germany, due to both sides. both increased their stakes in the energy war between Moscow and the West over Ukraine.

Russian energy giant Gazprom (MCX:) has blamed a technical fault in the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. But high-level maneuvers in the field of energy politics have underscored the spillover effects of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. conflict, far beyond the Ukrainian border.

The announcements come as Moscow and Kyiv blame their actions on one of the war’s most dangerous fronts – the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, where UN inspectors arrived a day earlier with the mission to prevent disaster.

Gazprom said it could no longer provide a timeframe for restarting deliveries via the pipeline, an announcement that would deepen Europe’s difficulties in securing fuel for the winter. This country faces an increase in the cost of living due to energy.

Nord Stream 1, which runs under the Baltic Sea to supply Germany and other countries, was resumed after a three-day pause for maintenance on Saturday at 0100 GMT.

Moscow has blamed sanctions imposed by the West after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for interfering with Nord Stream 1’s routine maintenance and operations. Brussels and Washington accuse Russia of using gas as fuel. economic weapon.

The US said it was working with Europe to ensure it had enough supplies for the winter.

Earlier, on Friday, finance ministers from the Group of Seven rich democracies – Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States – said Russia’s oil price cap was intended to “reduce.. Russia’s ability to finance a war of aggression while also limiting its impact on global energy prices “has skyrocketed.

The Kremlin – which calls the conflict “a special military operation” – has said it will stop selling oil to any country that implements the cap.

ASKING NURSING

The six-month conflict in Ukraine has killed thousands and left cities in ruins. In recent weeks, concerns have grown about a potential disaster at Zaporizhzhia, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.

Inspectors from the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency team, led by Director Rafael Grossi, defied intense shelling to reach the site on Thursday.

Grossi, after returning to Ukrainian-held territory, said the plant’s physical integrity had been violated several times. On Friday, he said he said he expected to issue a report early next week, and that two IAEA experts would stay at the plant for a longer period.

The site is located on the southern bank of a huge reservoir on the Dnipro River, 10 km (6 mi) above the Ukrainian positions.

Both sides accuse the other of shelling near the facility, which is still operated by Ukrainian personnel and provides more than a fifth of Ukraine’s electricity in peacetime. Kyiv also accused Russia of using it to shield its weapons, which Moscow denies. So far, Russia has resisted international calls to withdraw troops from the factory and demilitarize the area.

Ukraine’s state nuclear company said Russia had banned the IAEA team from the plant’s crisis center, where Kyiv said Russian troops were stationed, and that would make it difficult to make an objective assessment.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on the IAEA team to go further, despite the difficulties encountered.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t heard the main thing from the IAEA, which is the call for Russia to demilitarize this station,” Zelenskiy said in a video streamed on an Italian forum.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Ukraine is continuing to use weapons from its Western allies to bombard the plant, increasing the risk of a nuclear disaster. He rejected claims by Kyiv and the West that Russia had deployed heavy weapons at the plant.

Mayor of Mykola Lukashuk, mayor of Zaporizhzhia regional council, several towns near the plant were shelled by Russia on Thursday. Reuters was unable to independently confirm this.

A reactor at the site was reconnected to Ukraine’s power grid on Friday, a day after it was shut down due to shelling near the site, Energoatom said.

COUNTER-OFFENSIVE

Ukraine began an offensive this week to retake territory in southern Ukraine, mostly deeper into Dnipro in the neighboring Kherson province.

Both sides claim battlefield successes in the early days that Ukrainians see as a potential turning point in the war, although details have so far been scarce, with Ukrainian officials revealing much little information.

Ukraine’s Southern Command spokeswoman Natalia Humeniuk said on Friday that the Ukrainian military had destroyed ammunition depots and pontoon bridges to impede the movement of Russian stockpiles.

“Our successes are convincing and we will soon be able to reveal more information,” she said.

Moscow has denied reports of Ukraine’s progress and said its military has deployed Ukrainian forces.

Reuters could not independently verify those claims.

Ukraine’s General Staff on Friday said Russian forces had shelled dozens of cities and towns, including Kharkiv – Ukraine’s second largest city – in the north and the Donetsk region in the east.