MOSCOW, October 18. /TASS/. Europe will not be able to cover the gas deficit without Russian supplies, as the Strait of Hormuz is closed and the Qatari plant was shut down after attacks, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in an interview with Vesti.

"We are sure that there is currently no way to cover the deficit, given that the Strait of Hormuz is closed and the plant in Qatar was halted as a result of March attacks. This is why, in my view, European politicians are shooting themselves in the foot if they ban supplies, including those from Russia," Novak said.

He said that European consumers would pay the price.

"Accordingly, there will be a shortage. The ban on LNG supplies starting January 1 is very surprising, because today the European market is unbalanced. As we know, the deficit is significant, and the gas storage reserves are much lower--I believe they are 10·% lower than the average reserves for this period in previous years," the deputy prime minister noted.

Novak also said that 12·million tons of LNG were supplied to Europe over the past nine months. "This is even more than last year. It seems that our European partners want to fill up faster and buy more LNG before January·1, 2027," he added.