Prime Minister Justin Trudeau defended his government's decision to return a Russian gas turbine that was undergoing maintenance in Canada, despite sanctions imposed on Moscow.

Local media quoted Trudeau as saying in a press conference on Thursday that it was a difficult but necessary decision, noting that his country had to support Germany and other European allies amid imminent energy shortages.

Trudeau added: "We see how Russia is trying to use energy as a weapon to divide allies," and said his country made the decision to ensure that governments and peoples remain "steadfast and generous in their support for Ukraine."

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized the decision and said that the planned delivery of the turbine belonging to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline sends the wrong signal to Moscow.

The Russian state energy company Gazprom significantly reduced its natural gas supplies to Germany through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline last June, citing delays by the German company Siemens Energy in returning the turbine from Canada after maintenance.

Canada initially refused to return the turbine directly to Russia due to sanctions, then later decided to hand it over to Germany instead of Russia.

It is noteworthy that the pumping of Russian gas to Germany through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline has stopped since last Monday due to maintenance work, and there is great concern that Russia may not reopen the gas valve after the maintenance work, which usually takes up to ten days (i.e., until July 21), according to Nord Stream company, which said that no gas will be supplied to Germany during these ten days.