As part of the European Union's moves to end its dependence on gas supplies from Russia, the bloc has signed an interim agreement with Israel and Egypt on natural gas exports.

The deal would see a significant increase in the amount of Israeli natural gas exported to Egypt, where it could be liquefied and then shipped to European markets.

Israel is estimated to have gas reserves of at least one trillion cubic meters.

Two routes to bring gas to Europe are currently under consideration - the Egypt route is one option, while a pipeline envisaged through Turkey is another.

With this 🇪🇺🇪🇬🇮🇱 agreement we will work on the stable delivery of natural gas to the EU from the East Med region.

This will contribute to our 🇪🇺 energy security.

And we are building infrastructure fit for renewables - the energy of the future.

pic.twitter.com/GYFPXwFpsp

- Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) June 15, 2022

We note that Russia supplies the EU with 40 percent of the natural gas it imports, reports the

.

EU officials say the bloc's dependence on Russian gas allows Moscow to practice some form of blackmail on Europe.

In March, the EU pledged to reduce gas imports from Russia by two-thirds within a year.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says: "This is a big step forward in energy supply in Europe, but also for Egypt to become a regional energy hub."