European Commissioner for Energy Gunther Oettinger met with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Brussels for the fourth U.S.-EU Energy Council.
The council, in a statement, described Europe's planned Southern Corridor of gas transit networks as a "pivotal opportunity" to diversify a European energy sector that depends in part on Russian natural gas.
A 2009 spat over gas contracts between Ukraine and Russia disrupted downstream supplies for European consumers. That row, in part, led to a race to build more pipelines to avoid sensitive territory in Ukraine.
The council took note of Ukrainian energy reforms while at the same time calling for a level-playing field in terms of Russian energy policies in the region.
"The Energy Council highlighted the importance of mutually beneficial energy relations with Russia based on transparency, a level-playing field, fair competition and continued cooperation to ensure the safe and secure supply of energy," the statement read.
The Southern Corridor would rely on Caspian and other non-Russian gas suppliers. Russian energy company Gazprom is the target of a European anti-trust probe for its operations mainly in Eastern Europe.
Notable deaths of 2014 [PHOTOS]