Russia announced the end of the South Stream gas project

"Russia can not continue the construction of the South Stream gas pipeline" according to Vladimir Putin's visit to Turkey Monday. The Russian president has criticized the European Commission in this matter and regretted the position of Bulgaria who refused to allow the passage of the pipeline on its territory. The South Stream project was launched in December 2012

"Europe will not have these gas volumes, at least on the part of Russia, Putin said. But we think that it is contrary to the economic interests of Europe. This damages our cooperation. But it is the choice of our European friends. They are consumers, after all. "

While a number of bilateral agreements were signed during the visit, Ankara and Moscow stressed topics that unite them. Among the subjects of disagreement: Syria and Ukraine.

"We discussed Crimean Tatars in detail, said the president of Turkey, which condemned the annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula by Russia peninsula with a minority Turkic Tatar. On this issue, said Erdogan, Putin said his approach was positive and it offered and was willing to offer a maximum of Crimean Tatars rights more than they ever had before. "

Moreover, the Russian president announced an increase in deliveries of Russian gas to Turkey and a decrease of 6% of the price for Ankara in January. Turkey ranks second, behind Germany, customers of Russian natural gas.

Both countries want to triple the amount of their trade so that they reach 100 billion by 2023 bar.

With AFP and Reuters