Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said his country is a reliable energy supplier and is ready to resume deliveries to European Union member states. Putin said, however, that there will be no supplies for countries which have capped energy prices.
After the Nord Stream pipelines connecting Russia to Europe were damaged by a series of explosions, Putin said "the ball was in the EU's court" to resume deliveries.
"If they want to, then the taps can be turned on and that's it," Putin said.
Moscow is "ready to start deliveries" through parts of the pipeline not affected by the leaks, he added. Putin made no reference to EU sanctions against Moscow, nor to the alleged technical difficulties which interrupted supplies in the weeks prior to the Nord Stream incident.
Speaking at an energy industry meeting in Moscow, Putin blamed the EU for the current instability of global fuel prices, saying price-capping by some western governments was destroying the world market, and threatening the well-being of millioins of people.
International terrorism behind Nord Stream leaks
The Russian leader also said the Nord Stream leaks were the result of "international terrorism" and had benefitted the United States, Poland and Ukraine.
He claims that the damage to the Nord Stream reinforced the importance of other gas-transport networks, and had enabled the United States to further increase energy prices.
European leaders have been struggling to come up with a plan to tackle rising energy costs while maintaining sanctions on Russia.
More than half of the bloc's members have supported the idea of capping prices.
Putin said Russia "would not supply energy to the countries that limit their prices".
West destroying world market
The Russian leader claims that "with their cavalier decisions, some Western politicians are destroying the global market economy and are in fact posing a threat to the well-being of billions of people.
"Ordinary Europeans are suffering," Putin said, adding: "the population, like in the Middle Ages, has begun to stock up on firewood for the winter".
Ahead of a meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Putin proposed the creation of an energy hub in Turkey, using Russian gas transported by the Black Sea route.
