On Friday, the U.S. said that it would work with international partners to ensure that at least an additional 15 billion cubic meters of liquified natural gas (LNG) will reach Europe by the end of the year. It will continue for the next year, as well. This will decrease the bloc’s dependency on Russia, who is the main provider of energy to the region. In recent years, Russia has exported 14 to 18 billion cubic meters of LNG.

The agreement signals that the West and its allies are determined to stop the financing of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine through profits gained by energy sales as Russian oil and gas was responsible for 43 percent of the nation’s federal budget from almost a decade.

Cutting Europe’s dependence on fossil fuels from Russia could lead the bloc towards greener and cleaner energy security as well as strike another economic blow to the country which is facing strict sanctions on several sectors. Energy is a major source of income for Moscow and gives it political leverage over the countries who depend on It for their energy needs.

U.S. President Joe Biden described the agreement between the nation and the bloc as “groundbreaking.” He acknowledged that removing Russian gas would have costs for Europe but said that it was a “win for all of us.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who spoke alongside President Biden on Friday, in Brussels, said that the trans-Atlantic partnership stood stronger and was “more united than ever.” She said that all of them were determined “to stand up against the “brutal war” that had been started by Russia against Ukraine. She also noted that the war would be “a strategic failure for Putin.”

A joint Task Force For Energy Security will be set up. It will include a joint chair with one representative from the European Commission, which is the executive branch of the EU and a representative from the White House.

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