Lithuanian president: Russia uses gas monopoly to apply political pressure
VILNIUS. June 25 (Interfax/BNS) - Russia uses its gas monopoly as a tool for applying political pressure, while energy independence is vitally important for Lithuania's political and military independence, President Dalia Grybauskaite said.
"I feel this not as a threat but as pressure and as a political tool in an attempt to influence Lithuania's policy, economy and social affairs. This is why it is so important to have additional and independent gas sources," Grybauskaite said following a meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg in Vilnius on Tuesday when asked whether she sees Russia's gas monopoly as a threat to her country.
"Energy independence is a vitally important issue not only for a state's economic but also for its political, social and military independence, because today we fully depend on Russia's monopoly on gas and other resources, but especially on gas," she said.
Norway is a potential supplier of gas to Lithuania, Grybauskaite added. Norway is an important partner for Lithuania, but whether it could become the primary supplier of gas for a liquefied gas terminal will depend on the price, she said.
"I will venture to joke: this will depend on the price," she said.
Stoltenberg said also that everything will depend on the price, but what counts most is that there could be competition between gas suppliers to Lithuania.
An LNG terminal will be built, which will enable Lithuania to have different sources of gas supply, and this will stimulate competition, Stoltenberg said.