Zakharova responded to the statement of the Italian Foreign Ministry about "blackmail" by Russia

supplies 40% of all gas purchased by Italy. Rome intends to reduce dependence on Moscow and wants to increase supplies through the pipeline from Algeria. Zakharova said,

Moscow is not blackmailing the EU with gas supplies, European countries are doing this by imposing sanctions against Russia and building up armed forces near its borders, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on her Telegram channel.

In her publication, she quoted Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio: "An important gas agreement in Algeria will allow us to respond to possible Russian blackmail."

“It is the European Union that is blackmailing Russia with sanctions and threats of new restrictions, building up the armed forces of its countries along the perimeter of Russian borders, supplying weapons of all kinds to Ukraine,” Zakharova wrote, adding that this has been happening “for many years.”

Deliveries of Russian gas to Europe, "against all odds," are uninterrupted, she said.

Di Maio said in an interview with Bloomberg in early March that the European Union would not succumb to "Russian blackmail" in the energy sector. He also said that the EU is ready for the economic consequences of sanctions against Russia.

Italy, along with other EU countries, has previously announced plans to cut its dependence on Russian gas. The share of Russian supplies is 40% of all gas imports to the republic.

The State Duma proposed to temporarily stop gas supplies to the EU Politics

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On April 11, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi will visit Algeria to sign an agreement to increase gas imports with oil and gas company Sonatrach, Reuters reported, citing sources. The delegation will also include the head of the energy company Eni, Claudio Descalzi, and several Italian ministers.

Algeria is the second largest gas supplier to Italy. It has been supplying it through the Transmed pipeline since 1983. The daily capacity of the pipeline is 110 million cubic meters. m, but now less than 60 million cubic meters are supplied. m per day, the agency writes.

At the same time, a number of factors limit the growth of gas exports from this country. Among them: the growth of domestic consumption, the lack of investment, as well as the conflict between Algeria and Morocco, through whose territory the transit of Algerian gas to Spain has been completely suspended.