Business & Economics
Greece Opens “Vertical Corridor” to Ship U.S. LNG to Ukraine for Winter 2025-26
Athens and Kyiv signed a four-month emergency gas pact giving Ukraine its first guaranteed winter supply of U.S. LNG since Russia’s 2022 cutoff, rerouting fuel through Greece’s new Alexandroupolis hub.
Focusing Facts
- DEPA Commercial and Naftogaz executed a letter of intent on 17 Nov 2025 to move LNG from December 2025 to March 2026 through the Alexandroupolis–Bulgaria–Romania pipeline chain into Ukraine.
- Kyiv has earmarked almost €2 billion in financing—backed by European Commission guarantees and Ukrainian banks—to pay for the imported gas.
- Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said physical deliveries are slated to begin in January 2026.
Context
Great-power struggles often hinge on logistics: in 1948-49 Western aircraft kept West Berlin heated by flying in 2.3 million tons of coal and food, undermining Stalin’s blockade; today, the “Vertical Corridor” is an energy analogue to that airlift, designed to blunt Moscow’s attempt to freeze Ukraine into submission by targeting its power grid. Strategically, the deal reflects two multi-decade trends: (1) Europe’s structural pivot away from Russian hydrocarbons that began with the 2006 and 2009 Gazprom transit cut-offs and accelerated after the 2022 invasion; and (2) the emergence of the eastern Mediterranean as a diversification hub, enabled by FSRUs and inter-connector pipelines that didn’t exist a decade ago. Whether this moment is pivotal on a 100-year horizon depends on scale: the contracted volume covers only one winter quarter, yet it institutionalises non-Russian supply chains and deepens Greece’s role as a regional gatekeeper—an economic lever Athens can wield long after the shooting stops. Critics note the agreement’s reliance on U.S. spot LNG (price-volatile and carbon-heavy) and that Kyiv’s €2 billion, raised largely through debt, adds to a wartime fiscal cliff; nevertheless, history shows that maintaining heat and light in wartime can be as strategically decisive as any battlefield victory.
Perspectives
Left leaning media
Left leaning media — Presents the Greece-Ukraine LNG deal as a concrete sign of European solidarity that will shore up Kyiv’s energy security during another harsh winter of Russian attacks. Focuses on European unity and Russian culpability while giving scant attention to the domestic corruption scandal now dogging Zelensky’s energy sector, an omission that flatters the Ukrainian leadership.
Pro-Ukraine activist commentary
Pro-Ukraine activist commentary — Frames the gas agreement as one more example of determined international aid enabling Ukraine’s fight against relentless Russian drone and missile barrages. Highly emotive, openly cheer-leading for heavier strikes on Russia and overlooking any shortcomings on the Ukrainian side, producing coverage that is rallying but light on critical nuance.
Outlets carrying Xinhua wire copy
Outlets carrying Xinhua wire copy — Report the letter-of-intent in matter-of-fact terms, stressing the logistics of moving US LNG through Greece’s ‘Vertical Corridor’ and Ukraine’s gratitude while largely sidestepping discussion of the wider war. The neutral, technical tone avoids assigning blame for the conflict, reflecting Beijing’s preference to keep criticism of Moscow muted and instead spotlight commercial arrangements.