BUCHAREST, Romania, Sept 18, 2018 (News Wires) - Europe should lessen its dependence on Russian gas and diversify energy sources, US Energy Secretary Rick Perry said Tuesday at a summit to improve ties between eastern Europe and the US and the European Union. Perry asserted that Europe's dependence on Russian gas has increased from 30 percent to 40 per cent in recent years, calling it "a cause for concern." "There is great security in energy diversity," he said in comments made in the Romanian capital, Bucharest. "Energy security is tantamount to national security." Perry said countries of Central and Eastern Europe are facing "challenges due to a single (gas) supplier and Russia's aggressive posturing." He cited a nuclear project in the Czech Republic and offshore oil and gas drilling in the Black Sea as alternative energy sources. Perry was a key speaker at the Three Seas summit, which aims to boost connectivity in Eastern Europe and reduce the gap between the European's eastern and western members. Earlier, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said his country wants the US to play a key role in Eastern Europe, to strengthen the continent as a whole. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, a centrist with pro-Western views, called the economic presence of the US "a catalyzer for economic cooperation in the area." Iohannis, who hosted the two-day summit, announced that Germany, "which has multiple economic interests" in the region, would become a partner state in the Three Seas initiative. He also announced that Slovenia would host next year's summit. Perry and leaders including European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic discussed some 40 government-approved projects that aim to boost regional connectivity in transport, energy and the digital fields. Juncker called for more regional energy projects like a gas pipeline project between Austria, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria. He also called for members in the East to respect the rule of law, because "investments make no sense in the absence of respect for the rule of law." "Europe needs to breathe with two lungs, one in the East and the other in the West, while the emphasis must be put on cooperation," Juncker said.
