UK premier, German chancellor discuss 'energy challenges'
September 8, 2022, 9:05 am

UK premier, German chancellor discuss 'energy challenges'

Parliament building in Berlin, Germany (File photo: Pixabay)

According to a Downing Street statement on Wednesday (Sep 7), British Prime Minister Liz Truss and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz discussed “energy challenges” due to the war in Ukraine in a telephone call.

It said: "The leaders discussed the energy challenges faced by the UK and its European partners as a result of Putin’s illegal war.”

Russian energy company Gazprom announced last week that natural gas shipments from the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Europe had been halted indefinitely, according to the Anadolu Agency.

As the pair agreed on "the importance of energy resilience and independence," Truss, who officially took office Tuesday, stressed the importance of "protecting countries made vulnerable by Russia’s economic blackmail," it said.

The British prime minister expressed her willingness to expand defense cooperation with Germany.

Spoke to Chancellor @OlafScholz tonight about energy resilience in response to the challenges caused by Putin’s illegal war.

The UK and Germany are important economic partners and I am looking forward to working together on defence to uphold democracy and freedom in Europe. 🇬🇧🇩🇪 pic.twitter.com/5zLoHMebPl
— Liz Truss (@trussliz) September 7, 2022

Touching on the Northern Ireland Protocol during the conversation, Truss noted that "her priority is protecting peace and stability in Northern Ireland and upholding the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement."

France, Germany to help each other through energy crisis

The EU and the UK have been in a dispute for years regarding the application of the Northern Ireland Protocol which established a special trade regime.

The statement noted: "She stressed the importance of finding a solution to the fundamental problems with the text of the Protocol as it stands.”

Source: aa

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