Merkel in Strasbourg: Ukraine should remain gas transit country

German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel said this during a debate at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

"We work with Russia as a power source. But I do want Ukraine to remain a transit country ... Europe has to study the issue on how to be independent of Russian gas, and therefore it needs to diversify sources," the German leader said.

Merkel noted that Germany had built a terminal for receiving liquefied natural gas, which would allow obtaining energy from other sources.

Nord Stream 2 is a gas pipeline project which aims to carry more Russian natural gas under the Baltic Sea direct to Germany, bypassing Ukraine and Poland. Russian gas monopoly Gazprom owns 51% of the project’s shares. Russia wants to build two strings of the gas pipeline. The project opponents, including Poland, the Baltic countries, Ukraine, Moldova, the United States and Denmark, argue that Nord Stream 2 will increase the EU's dependence on Gazprom.

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