Since it did not comply with European Union legislation, Russian President, Vladimir Putin, officially cancelled the project in December 2014 and announced its replacement pipeline, which would pass through Turkey – the Turkish Stream. It was scrapped following the decision of the Bulgarian government, made under the Brussels’ pressure, to refuse to issue a permit on the project’s implementation on the country’s territory.
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Peskov also noted that both country’s leaders addressed the possibility of expansion regarding the Russian oil shipment.
Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the jet crisis past year between Turkey and Russia, the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on August 9 is regarded as the onset of a new era in terms of relations between the two countries, further fostering economic cooperation.
The minister said Russia and Turkey agreed to set up a working group to implement the project aiming to bring Russian natural gas to Southern Europe via Turkey.
The chief executive of Russian natural gas giant Gazprom Alexey Miller stated on Monday that the Turkish Stream pipeline could extend to the borders between Greece and Turkey.
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The South Stream project foresaw the construction of a pipeline that would supply natural gas from Russian Federation to Austria, across a route that would run under the Black Sea and through Bulgaria.
