Austria to import gas from Germany, Italy after halting of Russian gas supplies

Austria says it plans to import natural gas from Germany and Italy to mitigate the impact of the halting of Russian gas through Ukraine, but rising energy prices remain a concern.

Russian energy giant Gazprom said Wednesday that it had stopped gas supplies transiting through Ukraine due to the expiration of key agreements and the lack of renewal by the Ukrainian side.

Gazprom said Ukraine had repeatedly and unequivocally refused to extend these agreements, leaving the Russian company without the technical and legal means to continue the gas transit through Ukraine.

Austria is one of the European countries directly affected by the end of the supply, and while the Austrian government has sought to give assurances that gas shortages will be avoided through additional imports from Germany and Italy, many believe that higher gas prices are inevitable.

The Austrian Gas Grid Management AG (AGGM) confirmed on Wednesday that gas deliveries through the affected pipeline network have ceased, but stressed that Austria's energy sector had been prepared, and that domestic gas supplies will remain secure.

However, experts from the Energie-Control Austria (E-Control), the Austrian regulatory authority for the electricity and gas markets, forecast a short-term rise of three to ten euros per megawatt-hour (MWh) for natural gas.

Austrian newspaper Wiener Zeitung (WZ) has also reported that while gas prices are unlikely to soar as they did when the Russia-Ukraine crisis erupted in 2022, even a 10 percent increase would represent a significant financial burden for households and businesses, which could further pressure inflation.

The supplies of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory stopped on January 1 at 08:00 Moscow time, Gazprom said Wednesday in a statement.

Ukraine's Ministry of Energy reported that the transit of Russian natural gas through its gas transmission system was stopped at 07:00 Kyiv time Wednesday. The decision was made in the interest of national security, the ministry said, noting that Ukraine had informed its international partners about the move in the prescribed manner.

Austria to import gas from Germany, Italy after halting of Russian gas supplies

Austria to import gas from Germany, Italy after halting of Russian gas supplies

Austria to import gas from Germany, Italy after halting of Russian gas supplies

Austria to import gas from Germany, Italy after halting of Russian gas supplies

Twenty-five years after its founding, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has evolved into an economic grouping with tangible global influence, international experts have said.

The organization, spanning critical energy corridors, manufacturing hubs, and consumer markets, represents nearly a quarter of global GDP and over 15 percent of world trade.

Ahead of the upcoming SCO summit 2026 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Mohammed Saqib, Secretary-general of India-China Economic and Cultural Council hailed the organization's dual role in empowering member states and ensuring regional stability.

"SCO does two things. One is that it gives empowerment and also stability. It gives stability by creating cooperation between the countries. It empowers them by giving them infrastructure, by giving them opportunities to grow, and stability by having cooperation, working together," Saqib said. Against the backdrop of rising protectionist sentiments, SCO is believed to have turned shared needs into shared opportunities for all countries. In 2023 alone, SCO economies accounted for more GDP than the European Union.

"I think for rising protectionism, which now the West has been trying for a long time to do, SCO has substantially reduced the protectionism, fear, or implications for the Global South. Western countries are trying to essentially create a bloc confrontation. They want to continue with the hegemony, which they have been enjoying for the last 80-plus years. And now SCO has given an opportunity to get out of that dependence on the West," Saqib said.

"SCO is not involved in this so-called de-risking approach. This is an ideological agenda of some countries in the West who are scared of China. This approach is outdated and this mindset won't work in the 21st century. So they are going against the tide of history while SCO is on the right side of history," said Mushahid Hussain Sayed, a Pakistani Senator.

SCO's pursuit of multilateralism offers a platform for countries long marginalized in global economic cooperation, especially those in the Global South.

"In the past, Global South countries were always under pressure, under Western pressure. And Western governments would give them very unfair agreements to sign. And the West had a monopoly over industry and business to a large degree. And so they would put forward one-sided trade deals, and trade deals that benefited the West and gave very little benefit to countries across the Global South. Now, with the rise of Asian powers, the West no longer has that monopoly. And therefore, countries across the Global South have a choice. They can work with the rising Asian countries that offer much better deals, that offer much more beneficial collaboration, collaboration with much better results," said Mohammad Marandi, a Professor at the University of Tehran.

"I think the Global South now is seeing a focus on economic connectivity, economic relationships. It is tired of the militarization of international relations. But the SCO framework is somewhat different. SCO is trying to be the bridge between different countries in trade, economy, investment, road transport," Sayed said.

As Western sanctions reshape trade flows, how to leverage the SCO platform to enhance their independent development capabilities is a key focus for many Global South countries.

"They should cooperate more. They should have more South-South cooperation. They should have more trade among themselves. They should break these border tariffs and trades," said Sayed.

"Asia needs greater infrastructure projects in order to protect the trade routes from disruption on the seas. That, I think, creates an incentive for greater land-based infrastructure to be developed among SCO member states to protect the trade and business between these countries from external factors," Marandi said.

Twenty-five years on, the SCO is no longer just a security group. It is becoming an engine of shared prosperity.

By deepening connectivity, expanding South-South cooperation, and offering an open, rules-based alternative to bloc politics, the SCO is helping Global South countries turn interdependence into opportunity. In an age of fragmentation, its message is clear: The future belongs not to walls or sanctions, but to bridges, trade routes, and joint development.

SCO serves as economic engine in era of fragmentation: experts