Eurocommissaris vraagt Rusland deelname aan nieuw energiebeleid (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - EU energy commissioner Gunther Oettinger i has invited Russia to contribute to a new EU energy strategy, speaking in Moscow on an important day in the trial of oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky with the very man who took away his company.

Mr Oettinger met with Russia's deputy prime minister in charge of energy, Igor Sechin, in the Russian capital on Tuesday (2 November) after traveling to Moscow for a German think-tank event.

Following the meeting, Mr Sechin's spokesman told Russia's main news agencies: "Oettinger proposed considerably expanding co-operation as part of the Energy Dialogue and invited Russian specialists to join the development of the European Union's long-term energy strategy."

When asked for clarification by EUobserver, a spokesman for Mr Oettinger played down the nature of the offer: "He did not go so far as to include them in the consultation process on the 2050 strategy. There is no formal role for Russia in this process. But, of course, the commission is ready to hold discussions with its Russian partners, including on the 2050 roadmap, especially on the gas aspects [of the strategy paper]."

The EU-Russia Energy Dialogue is a diplomatic process launched on 30 October 2000 to enhance EU energy security.

The EU buys over 40 percent of its gas imports and 30 percent of its oil imports from Russia. Its long-term energy strategy is currently based on diversification of suppliers and renewable resources. But Russia wants EU backing for South Stream, a gas pipeline that would strengthen its near-monopoly on exports from Central Asia.

The Oettinger-Sechin meeting took place on the last day in the trial of fallen Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky.

Russian authorities in 2003 arrested Mr Khodorkovsky on charges of fraud and tax evasion and smashed up his massive oil company, Yukos. The second trial, on embezzlement, could see him stay in jail until 2017. Mr Khodorkovsky has accused Mr Sechin of personally orchestrating the Yukos affair for political motives. The deputy PM is also the chairman of Rosneft, the Russian oil firm which bought most of Yukos' assets at knock-down prices.

Speaking out in court in Moscow on Tuesday, Mr Khodorkovsky said: "A state that destroys its best companies, which are ready to become global champions, a country that holds its own citizens in contempt, trusting only in bureaucracy and the special services, is a sick state."

One of his lawyers, Sandy Saunders, at a press conference the same day called the case "a watershed event in Russia's turn away from the rule of law." "This case is known to the EU and US leaders. It's being watched and it will be remembered," he added.

Asked by this website whether Mr Oettinger's choice of date for the Sechin meeting was a poor one, an EU official said the date was linked to the 10th anniversary of the EU-Russia Energy Dialogue.

Mr Oettinger's spokesman said the Sechin offer was not part of his official business: "It was not officially indicated in the meetings. It was not officially said." The spokesman declined to comment on the Khodorkovsky case.

The Khodorkovsky verdict is expected on 15 December, one week after an EU-Russia summit in Brussels.

Mr Oettinger while in Russia also met with Gazprom boss Alexei Miller during which he gave his approval for a new Polish-Russian gas contract until 2022.