Minister of Energy of Ukraine German Galushchenko appealed to the members of the European Parliament to continue supporting Ukraine. The Minister of Energy took part in a meeting of the European Parliament’s Committee on Industry, Research and Energy during his working visit to Brussels.

German Galushchenko stressed the important role of synchronising the Ukrainian power system with ENTSO-E to ensure pan-European energy security.

“The synchronisation allowed us to secure the system at the beginning of a full-scale war and to survive the most difficult period that began in October 2022,” he said.

The Minister stressed that russia continued to systematically target Ukrainian energy infrastructure, and in total, fired about 20% of its missile stockpile at Ukraine’s energy facilities. As a result, more than 13 million Ukrainians were deprived of access to electricity at one time. German Galushchenko emphasised that the aggressor must be held accountable for these crimes.

The Minister of Energy also called on members of the European Parliament to impose sanctions on the russian nuclear industry, as the russians had violated all possible nuclear and radiation safety rules with their actions around nuclear facilities in Ukraine.

“We understand the difficulties in imposing sanctions, but there are ways to do it. It is important to start following this path, and this step should be announced now,” he said.

German Galushchenko stressed that russia is waging war not only against Ukraine, but against the entire civilised world, against democracies, so the response to the aggressor should be solidary.

“The solidarity demonstrated by the EU in this confrontation is a great achievement, and we must maintain this unity. I am convinced that russia will again try to blackmail Ukraine, Europe or other countries with energy. But we have to make it clear that we will not return to russian energy supplies after this war, after our victory,” he stressed.

The Minister emphasised the importance of further integration of the Ukrainian and European energy markets. The Ukrainian side is interested in participating in the joint natural gas procurement platform, which will help to shape market prices and deter market manipulation.

In addition, German Galushchenko stressed the potential for increasing electricity exports to the EU and expressed hope that MEPs would support the relevant decisions.

The Minister of Energy thanked the EU member states for the support they had provided and continued to provide to the Ukrainian energy sector and expressed hope for further close partnership in facing the challenges of preparing for the next winter.

“We thank you for the assistance you have already provided. Now we need your support in recovery. When we win this war, each of you – those who have supported Ukraine all this time – will also win,” he concluded.