EU’s top executive backs price cap on Russian pipeline gas

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s top executive says the bloc’s electricity market is no longer working and has proposed a price cap on Russian pipeline gas. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said Friday that Europe’s priority is to save energy because reserves are scarce. She blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine for the energy crisis and the dramatic rise of gas and electricity prices. Earlier this week, Russia’s Gazprom halted the flow of natural gas through a major pipeline from Russia to Europe, citing maintenance reasons. Gazprom started cutting supplies through Nord Stream 1 in mid-June and Russia has reduced gas deliveries to several European countries which have sided with Ukraine in the war.