Qatar to host gas exporters summit

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Qatar is scheduled to host a summit of top natural gas exporters. 

The summit includes two days of ministerial sessions and Russia Iran and Qatar are important participants in the summit. The United States and Australia, two other major exporters, are not included in the group.

It has not yet been confirmed if Russia will attend the February 22 summit. 

According to US officials, the US asked Qatar to provide emergency supplies if pipelines to Western Europe were impacted. 

President Joe Biden met with Germany's new leader on Monday in a flurry of diplomacy across two continents, vowing to block the crucial Nord Stream 2 Russia-to-Germany gas pipeline if "Russia invades Ukraine."

In the event of an emergency, the European Union has been looking for alternatives to Russian gas. On Friday, European Union energy commissioner Kadri Simson paid a visit to Azerbaijan, an observer member of the fas forum, in an endeavor to diversify the continent's energy supplies.

According to the GECF, its 11 members and seven associate nations account for 70% of known gas reserves and 51% of worldwide liquefied natural gas exports.

European energy security requires a collective effort from various parties, the minister added in light of tensions between the West and Russia over Nord Stream 2, which would help Europe overcome its energy crisis, but the US opposes.

The West, mostly the United States, has been using the natural gas pipeline as leverage against Russia to get it to comply with its security concerns in the region.