EurOil: European gas prices bullish amid invasion warnings

TTF gas prices were bullish in early trading this week, after the White House warned that a Russian invasion of Ukraine could occur within days.

The Biden administration’s national security advisor Jake Sullivan warned late on February 11 that Russia could launch a military incursion “any day now” – possibly even before the Winter Olympics in Beijing end.

“Any American in Ukraine should leave as soon as possible, and in any event in the next 24 to 48 hours,” Sullivan told reporters in a briefing.

His comments echoed those of US President Joe Biden, who in an interview with NBC News on February 10, called on US citizens in Ukraine to “leave now,” stressing that “this is a very different situation, and things could go crazy quickly.”

Biden also had a phone call with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on February 12, warning his adversary that in the event of an invasion, “the US together with our allies and partners will respond decisively and impose swift and severe costs on Russia,” according to a White House statement. 

“President Biden was clear with President Putin that while the US remains prepared to engage in diplomacy, in full co-ordination with our allies and partners, we are equally prepared for other scenarios.”

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson similarly warned that the situation in Ukraine was “very, very dangerous,” on February 14, and urged Putin to step back from ‘the edge of a precipice.” He also said that the evidence was “pretty clear” that Russia was planning an invasion, although the Kremlin has consistently said this is not its intention. Nevertheless, Russia has amassed a force of some 130,000 troops at Ukraine’s borders with Russia and Belarus.

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