Europe's dependence on Russian gas will continue for the next ten years. This was stated by Senior Advisor to the President of Turkey İbrahim Kalın, reminding that earlier Europe was developing the Nabucco project as an alternative to Russian supplies.
“If we talk about alternatives, then Turkey and Azerbaijan have implemented the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) project. Its expansion can be considered as an alternative to Russian gas. It is possible to connect different sources to this project through Turkey,” said Kalın said.
Despite that, Erdogan's representative expressed an opinion that Ankara does not plan to “burn all bridges with Russia.” There must be someone who will “talk to Moscow.” In addition, Kalın said, anti-Russian sanctions would hit Turkey harder than Russia.
“The West does not put pressure on us to impose sanctions on Russia. Everyone understands our position, our delicate mediating role,” Kalın said, adding that Ankara was not going to impose restrictions on Moscow.
Referring to the possible meeting of the Presidents of Russia and Ukraine, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, Kalın said that it is still early for such a meeting. There are many issues to be discussed.
