Ukraine plans to disconnect from power grid with Belarus, Russia by end of 2023 – Kuleba

08:48, 24.02.2021 1 min read

Ukraine plans to disconnect from the electricity grid with Belarus and the Russian Federation by the end of 2023, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.

"Since Soviet times, the Ukrainian power grid has been a part of a single network that includes Belarus and Russia. But we want to cut off from this network and make the Ukrainian power grid an integrated part of the European network. We plan to do this by the end of 2023. After that, any power flows from Belarus will become physically impossible," he said at a press conference after talks with Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielus Landsbergis in Kyiv on Tuesday.

Kuleba pointed out that this step will contribute to the energy security of Ukraine, Europe in general, including Lithuania.

In turn, Landsbergis expressed Lithuania's concern over the fact that Belarusian electricity has access to the Ukrainian market and that this could help develop an unsafe nuclear power plant in Ostrovets in Belarus.