The United States will continue to work with the European Union to
promote diversification of energy supplies and lessen dependence on
Russia, US Ambassador to Greece
Geoffrey Pyatt told New Europe on February 1 on the sidelines of the Athens Energy Forum 2017.
“The US goal is to encourage a robust and resilient energy network
across Europe. The EU has been a key partner with the United States in
advancing the goal of energy diversification. The Ukrainian gas pipeline
network is reliable. There is no question about that,” said Pyatt, who
served as the US Ambassador to Ukraine before leaving Kiev and moving to
Athens last year.
He said Washington supports projects like the Trans Adriatic Pipeline
(TAP), which plans to transport Caspian gas across Greece and Albania
to Italy, but opposes the expansion of the Nord Stream pipeline from
Russia to Germany.
“We would like to see additional projects like TAP, which I talked
about in my remarks, which have the effect of increasing diversification
of supply. We oppose projects like Nord Stream 2 that have effect of
simply amplifying Europe’s dependence on Russian supplies,” Pyatt said.
The US Ambassador to Athens said that Washington works closely with
Brussels and European Commission Vice President for Energy Union
Maroš Šefčovič
to increase the bloc’s energy security. “We have very, very strong
synergies with the European Union. I talked in my remarks about my own
great personal respect for Commissioner Šefčovič and the role the
Commissioner played; it much the same here in our work with Greece as
well,” Pyatt said.
Turning to energy developments in Eastern Mediterranean and the
potential of exporting newly found gas supplies from the region to
Europe, the US Ambassador told New Europe that the US is supportive of
establishing a North-South gas corridor.
He said Greece’s Revithoussa liquefied natural gas (LNG) Terminal and
a similar project in Croatia “have the effect of increasing resilience
of European gas networks and facilitating diversification of supplies”.
Pyatt also said that Washington is “very supportive of cooperation
between Greece, Cyprus and Israel,” which is strategically important. It
says it promotes US goals of establishing a peace process in Cyprus and
developing the region’s energy resources.
https://www.neweurope.eu/article/ambassador-pyatt-says-us-wants-eu-energy-deal-block-russia/