Kremlin Refutes Claims of Russia Using Energy Resources as Weapon

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Kremlin strongly disagrees with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan's claims that Russia uses its energy resources as a weapon, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.

"This is a wrong assessment ... First, the Europeans themselves admit at the state level that Russia is fully implementing all of its obligations. Second, Russia is ready to quickly discuss new contracts, which are an uncontested damper against the currently seen market fluctuations, this is not a secret, this has been said repeatedly," Peskov told reporters.

Russia has never suspended gas supplies "even in the most difficult times," since it never uses energy resources as a political pressure instrument, the Kremlin spokesman emphasized.

"It is the United States that constantly threatens with sanctions against purely commercial energy projects that can potentially make a huge contribution to the stabilization of European energy markets. In this case, the US directly uses the energy issues as a tool for political and commercial blackmailing ... Russia has been and will remain a responsible country that is committed to its obligations and that is ready to meet the growing needs of our European partners for energy resources," Peskov concluded.

Natural gas prices have recently skyrocketed in Europe. On Wednesday, the price exceeded $1,700 for a cubic meter of gas at the bid opening and was rising during the day up to over $1,900.

With winter approaching, the European Union has been struggling to fill its gas reserves as member states rely on imports for much of their gas supplies.