The Guardian reports that “the gas deal announced last week saw agreement between Russia and China after 10 years of negotiation. The implications of Russia’s turn eastward to seek a new energy partner should raise concerns in Europe over its own gas supply and wider energy security.”  

“Gazprom’s share of Europe’s gas market reached approximately 30% in 2013. As the Ukraine crisis has soured relations between Russia and Europe, both sides are looking to diversify.”  

“Europe’s need to diversify away from Russian gas is hardly new. Russia’s tendency to use gas as a political tool to put pressure on Ukraine and Europe has demonstrated the risks of relying on one partner. More globally, growing concern around climate change and its impact on national security as a ‘threat multiplier’ has lent support to the world’s reduced use of fossil fuels. Yet events in Ukraine and the Sino-Russian gas deal have accelerated the urgency with which Europe needs to seek new energy sources.”