Poland’s PGNiG seeks to extract gas in Western Ukraine – Morawiecki

That’s according to Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki who spoke at a joint press conference with the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal within the framework of the XXX Economic Forum in Karpacz, Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"We also want Poland’s oil and gas company PGNiG to expand cooperation with Ukrainian partners in gas production in Western Ukraine, which will make it possible to become independent of Russia," Morawiecki said.

He recalled the recent decision of the EU court which did not allow Gazprom to monopolize the operation of the OPAL gas pipeline (ground extension of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline – ed.).

According to the Polish prime minister, this will help jointly work out mechanisms to support Poland's strategy as a gas hub.

Morawiecki has also reiterated Poland’s support for the territorial integrity of Ukraine, condemned Russia's aggressive actions in Ukraine, and welcomed the launch of the Crimea Platform initiative.

Morawiecki said that during a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, the situation in Belarus and on the Polish-Belarusian border was discussed in detail.

He says Warsaw wants to develop a partnership with Ukraine in many areas, including in developing border infrastructure, cross-border cooperation, and economic cooperation.

Morawiecki noted that Poland has provided Ukraine with medications to combat the coronavirus pandemic, with the most recent delivery being a batch of 600,000 AstraZeneca vaccine doses. The second such batch is set to be delivered soon.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, in July, the EU court rejected Germany's appeal against a previous ruling of the European Court, which in 2019 declared unconstitutional the decision of the European Commission to grant Gazprom monopoly access to the OPAL gas pipeline.

Photo: Denys Shmyhal's press service

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