The United States, Poland and Ukraine have signed a trilateral memorandum of understanding aimed at securing the energy supplies of Poland and Ukraine with liquified natural gas (LNG) from the US, the Ukrainian press has reported.
According to a memorandum signed by US energy secretary Rick Perry, Polish government representative Piotr Niamski and Oleksandr Danylyuk, the head of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, the US government will support the two Central and Eastern European states in diversifying their energy resources and establishing the applicable technological facilities.
“One of the steps in this direction will be to adjust the supply of liquefied gas through Poland. For this purpose, a specialised interconnector will be built to unite the gas transport systems of Ukraine and the EU,” Mr Danylyuk said.
According to Mr Niamski, Poland would be able to transfer six billion cubic metres of gas to Ukraine from 2021. The current capacity is 1.5 billion cubic metres.
“The US is ready to help Ukraine achieve its full energy potential with American technology, resources and support,” Mr Perry noted, adding that “for Ukraine, energy security is national security.”
Speaking in Warsaw on August 31, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky joined Poland in opposing Nord Stream 2, the Russian pipeline that bypasses bypasses Poland and Ukraine, calling it “unacceptable, as it poses a threat to all of Europe.”
“At the same time, we stand for diversifying energy sources, as well as energy cooperation in the Poland-US-Ukraine triangle,” he said.
—
Photo: Official website of the government of Poland