KYIV, Dec 14 – The launch of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea will mean a complete cessation of the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine and will lead to security breakdown for Eastern and Central Europe, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.

"The very fact that Nord Stream 2 can hypothetically be put into operation is extremely destabilizing for our region," Zelensky said in an interview with the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, answering the question whether it is not enough to endanger the launch of the gas pipeline to put pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin.