European leaders seek ways to curb dependence on Russian gas

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders will seek ways to cut their multi-billion-dollar dependence on Russian gas at talks in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, while stopping short of severing energy ties with Moscow for now.

Russia's seizure of Ukraine's Crimea region has revived doubts about whether the European Union should continue to rely on Russia for nearly a third of its gas, providing Gazprom with an average of $5 billion (3 billion pounds) per month in revenues. Some 40 percent of that gas is shipped via Ukraine.