In response to worries that Moscow might use its significant energy exports to resist Western criticism over its invasion of Ukraine, a key pipeline operator said on Thursday that Russia is restarting gas deliveries via the pipeline to Europe.
A representative for the operator told Reuters that restarting the Nord Stream 1 pipeline after a 10-day maintenance pause might take several hours.
The resumption of the pipeline followed remarks from Russia’s foreign minister that indicated the Kremlin’s objectives had grown over the five-month conflict.
On Wednesday, Sergei Lavrov said that Russia’s military “tasks” in Ukraine now extend beyond the eastern Donbas region.