Bulgaria, Russia to build gas pipeline bypassing Ukraine
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Bulgaria and Russia agreed on the construction of the gas pipeline bypassing Ukraine for the pumping of the Russian gas from Turkey to Serbia as EUobserver reported.

After the conclusion of the contract between the Russian “Gazprom”. Bulgarian “Bulgargaz” and Swiss MET, Bulgaria committed to the building of a new pipeline.

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The project at the cost of 1,4 billion euro can strengthen the independence of the EU from the gas and undermine the security of Ukraine.

Bulgaria will receive the Russia gas through “Turkstream”, which is laid on the bottom of the Black Sea after 2019. Now, Bulgaria completely depends on the supplies of the Russian gas transported through the Ukrainian gas transporting system and territory of Romania.

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Earlier Polish President Andrzej Duda urged the German government to give up on Nord Stream 2 construction. He insisted that the new pipeline would breach the current energy balance, posing danger to the energy safety of some countries in Central and Eastern Europe.

Putin claimed that the Russian Federation was ready to save the gas transit through Ukraine after the launch of the Nord Stream 2.

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Gazprom and its partners intended to begin the realization of the Nord Stream 2 project, which costs ten billion dollars. It is expected that the 1200 km gas pipeline will be laid through the Baltic Sea, and will connect Russia and Germany passing Ukraine, Poland, and Baltic countries. The capacity of the gas pipeline will be twice increased than the first Nord Stream. The construction is estimated to be completed by the end of 2019.

Ukraine is adamantly opposed to the construction by calling it politically motivated and suggesting the EU to create a consortium with the involvement of European companies to manage the existing more efficient transportation route through Ukraine. A number of EU countries have expressed their disagreement with the Nord Stream 2 project in particular Poland and Lithuania.