As of January 1, 2025, Ukraine has stopped the transit of Russian gas through its territory to Europe. Official Kyiv has refused to extend the 5-year transit agreement that has been in place since 2019. This can be considered one of the most striking events in the global energy market in recent years, as it involves the natural gas supply to a portion of Europe.

Axar.az reports that Ukrainian economic expert and candidate of economic sciences Ivan Us stated in an exclusive interview with Azertac that the peak volume of Russian natural gas transit to Europe occurred during the Soviet era, after which it declined:

“After Russia launched its war against Ukraine, the volume of gas transit decreased even further. According to 2024 year-end statistics, Russia’s gas transit to Europe amounted to approximately 30 billion cubic meters. About half of Russia's gas exports to Europe passed through Ukraine, generating annual revenues of $5-6 billion for Russia. Ukraine also benefited, earning roughly $800 million annually from Russian gas transit.”

According to him, European countries will be supplied with natural gas via alternative routes:

“There is the ‘Southern Corridor’ for supplying Europe with natural gas. Russian gas is delivered via the Black Sea through Turkiye to Bulgaria and then to other European countries. As for Europe’s gas imports from alternative sources, first and foremost, we must mention gas from Azerbaijan, Norway, the USA, Qatar, and Algeria. Favorable logistics are in place for delivering natural gas from these countries to Europe. Since the beginning of Russia’s war against Ukraine, Europe has proactively prepared for alternative gas routes. It’s also important to note a simple fact: starting with Trump’s presidency, European countries were pushed to increase natural gas imports from the US significantly.”