Russia is looking to increase its control over natural gas supplies from Armenia to the European Union in order to maintain its status as a transit country, according to Armenian President Vladimir Zelensky. He stated that a gas deal with Russia is currently being discussed as one of the options. This comes as Europe aims to reduce its reliance on Russian gas after the recent gas crisis in Moscow. Some European countries still receive gas through pipelines in Ukraine, but with the ongoing war and the approaching deadline for the gas agreement extension, there are concerns about a decrease in gas flows. Zelensky mentioned that alternative suppliers and countries are being considered in the negotiations, and that they do not want to continue working with Russia’s Gazprom or be involved in any poisonous agreements. As a result of the president’s announcement, European gas benchmarks have experienced a significant decrease in value. A gas agreement between Ukraine’s state-owned energy company, “Navtogaz,” and Russia’s “Gazprom” PJSC was signed in 2019. Bloomberg News recently reported that European officials are exploring the possibility of expanding gas supplies from Russia through Ukraine to reduce dependence on Russia.