As Winter approaches, many people in Central and Eastern Europe remember the chill caused last winter by Russia's deliberate cut-off of gas supplies. Until the EU establishes a common energy policy and a single market for natural gas, Russia will be tempted to use new blockades to continue the divide-and-rule policy that the world has witnessed since Vladimir Putin came to power.
COPENHAGEN – As winter approaches, many people in Central and Eastern Europe remember the chill caused last winter by Russia’s deliberate cut-off of gas supplies. That shutdown was a harsh reminder that gas is now the Kremlin’s primary political instrument as it seeks to re-establish its privileged sphere of interest in what it thinks of as Russia’s “near-abroad.” If Russia is allowed to continue imposing Moscow rules on Europe’s energy supplies, the result will be costly – not only for Europe, but for Russia as well.
So it is past time that the European Union stopped treating energy as a bilateral issue, with some of the larger member states trying to protect their own narrow interests at the expense of the common European good. The EU urgently needs to build a common energy policy and a single market for natural gas. Until both are established, there is a grave risk that Russia will use new blockades to continue the kind of divide-and-rule policy that the world has witnessed since Vladimir Putin came to power.
The planned Nord Stream gas pipeline on the bottom of the Baltic Sea is a good example of the problems that everyone in Europe is facing. The pipeline has been established as a Russian-German-Dutch consortium, but it is the Russian energy giant Gazprom that is in the driver’s seat with 51% of the shares. Nord Stream will enable Russia to deliver natural gas directly to Germany without using the existing land-based connections.
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It is hard to reconcile the jubilant mood of many business leaders with the uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine. While there are some positive signs of economic recovery, a sudden escalation could severely destabilize the global economy, cause a stock market crash, and accelerate deglobalization.
warns that the Ukraine war and economic fragmentation are still jeopardizing world growth prospects.
The nation that went to the gates of Moscow in World War II has become as aggressive as a cuddly cat. But with its decision to send Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine, Germany's "culture of reticence," particularly with respect to Russia, may soon be a thing of the past.
examines the origins and implications of the landmark decision to send battle tanks to Ukraine.
COPENHAGEN – As winter approaches, many people in Central and Eastern Europe remember the chill caused last winter by Russia’s deliberate cut-off of gas supplies. That shutdown was a harsh reminder that gas is now the Kremlin’s primary political instrument as it seeks to re-establish its privileged sphere of interest in what it thinks of as Russia’s “near-abroad.” If Russia is allowed to continue imposing Moscow rules on Europe’s energy supplies, the result will be costly – not only for Europe, but for Russia as well.
So it is past time that the European Union stopped treating energy as a bilateral issue, with some of the larger member states trying to protect their own narrow interests at the expense of the common European good. The EU urgently needs to build a common energy policy and a single market for natural gas. Until both are established, there is a grave risk that Russia will use new blockades to continue the kind of divide-and-rule policy that the world has witnessed since Vladimir Putin came to power.
The planned Nord Stream gas pipeline on the bottom of the Baltic Sea is a good example of the problems that everyone in Europe is facing. The pipeline has been established as a Russian-German-Dutch consortium, but it is the Russian energy giant Gazprom that is in the driver’s seat with 51% of the shares. Nord Stream will enable Russia to deliver natural gas directly to Germany without using the existing land-based connections.
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