Greece and Russia signed a memorandum in Saint Petersburg on construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline to Europe through Greece, implying the entire funding coming from Russia.
After the signing ceremony, Greece’s energy minister Panagiotis Lafazanis said that given the present tough situation, Athens needed support, and cooperation with Russia was not in any way aimed against other eurozone countries.
In his turn, Alexander Novak, the Russian energy minister, said that the Greek section of the pipeline would not belong to Gazprom. The project ownership will be split equally between Russia and Greece. The funds are likely to come from Vnesheconombank. However, the cost of the project is still unknown.
The pipeline is expected to reach Turkey without going through the territory of Ukraine, though Ankara has not given its consent yet. As for the European Union, it opposes the construction of the gas pipeline.
After the conflict with Ukraine and rejoining of Crimea, Russia has to seek alternative routes to supply gas to its biggest market – Europe – avoiding the territory of Ukraine.
