Russian gas exporter Gazprom looks set to escape punishment under EU 11th round of sanctions. While mounting evidence points to him funding mercenaries fighting against Ukraine.

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Allegations that Gazprom is directly involved in Russia's invasion of Ukraine appear more and more often. A number of messages and videos from fighters on the front line indicate that Gazprom's internal security service members have united in combat units.. The most famous of them is called " This name echoes the name of the now defunct Nord Stream gas pipeline, which runs along the bottom of the Baltic Sea..

Gazprom provides and equips the Potok detachment. Although it is not known how the battle group works and how many people participate in it. Yevgeny Prigozhin, who runs the notorious Wagner mercenary group, claimed on social media last month that he had spoken to several Potok recruits.. Ukrainian intelligence reported on Gazprom mercenaries in February, alleging that a subsidiary of the Russian energy exporter had set up its own private military unit..

Breaking ties.

The Ukrainian government believes that such reports should encourage Western companies to cut ties with the Russian gas supplier..

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“This, of course, takes Gazprom beyond the scope of purely commercial activities and makes it an accomplice in war crimes in Ukraine.. Now they have reached a new level, being an outspoken participant in criminal actions,” Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko told Politico..

Some EU capitals agree with him.

“Such facts should only stimulate further discussion … about how we can distance ourselves from Gazprom as much as possible,” an unnamed Lithuanian diplomat told the publication..

But this is unlikely to mean a change in EU policy towards the Russian company.. Although the bloc imposed a near-complete ban on the import of oil, coal and refined products from Russia, natural gas and Gazprom were unaffected.. Before the war, the Russian giant supplied about 45% of EU gas imports. According to the think tank Bruegel, as of the end of April, this share had dropped to 7%.. This is largely due to the fact that Russia has limited flows and stopped the operation of the Nord Stream gas pipeline.. But several EU countries - most notably Hungary, but also Austria and Slovakia - still receive certain volumes of gas from Gazprom..

Greek DEPA and Italy's Eni also have ongoing contracts with Gazprom, Aura Sabadous, senior analyst at market research firm ICIS, told Politico.. Since decisions on EU sanctions are made unanimously, the chances that Gazprom will be punished are very small.. In turn, the United States and Great Britain imposed sanctions against the head of the Russian company Alexei Miller..

According to the European Commission, " Politico was told this by a senior official of the European Commission, who wished to remain anonymous.. Reports of Gazprom mercenaries in Ukraine are not enough to change those views, according to diplomats from two EU countries who participated in the sanctions discussions..

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The Austrian Foreign Ministry said it had no " But Vienna is doing " The Slovak diplomat said that sanctions against Gazprom "

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blood and gas.

Although there are still few details about the Gazprom mercenary unit, the existence of its own private army does not surprise anyone, experts say..

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“The company has had its own private security service for many years to protect energy facilities and ensure security,” says Tracey German, Professor of Conflict and Security at King's College London..

She believes that private groups of mercenaries are being used to fill gaps in the Russian armed forces, as well as to hide the true number of victims of the invasion..

In all likelihood, the forces of Gazprom are well equipped and staffed with fighters with experience in the security services or the army..

But the energy giant's private army "

“These more niche mercenary groups are probably better trained and the quality of the soldiers is probably higher,” he said, adding that they are probably “tasked to guard the energy infrastructure and their combat operations are better planned.”. to avoid such losses as Wagner suffered"

According to Adnan Watansever, a professor and Russian energy expert at King's College London, groups like Potok give the Kremlin a " It's also a "