Moscow Times: Bulgaria Convinced South Stream Pipeline Plan Will Go Ahead

Bulgaria has not given up plans to build the South Stream pipeline delivering Russian natural gas to Europe and sees the Gazprom-led project as irreversible, Bulgarian Energy Minister Dragomir Stoynev said Monday.

Bulgaria said Sunday it had halted work on the pipeline after the European Union and U.S. expressed concerns about the project.

Designed to bypass Ukraine, the pipeline has inflamed tensions between the EU and Russia after Brussels asked Sofia last week to suspend work pending a decision on whether it complies with EU law.

Stoynev said in a statement he was certain South Stream would be built once disputes over how to structure it as a European project are cleared.
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