Putin Puts Europe In A Vice
By Benjamin Bidder in Moscow
The Russian pipeline North Stream is on its way. Now Vladimir Putin wants to put a second gas pipeline through Bulgaria. The new project not only competes with the European pipeline Nabucco, but also entrenches Europe's dependence on Russian gas.
"Projects like South Stream are in the long-term national interests of Russia and those of our European partners," wrote Russian president Vladimir Putin in an article published on the occasion of his two-day visit to the Bulgarian capital city, Sofia. It was a swipe at the EU that Putin simply couldn't resist. And it hit home. Many in the EU are, after all, trying to reduce theirm dependence on Russian gas.
Putin has again thrown a wrench in the system. In Sofia on Friday and Saturday, he secured Bulgarian agreement for a new pipeline to cross the country on its way further into Europe. The project is called South Stream, and it's in direct competition with the EU joint project known as Nabucco. The pipeline named after a Giuseppe Verdi's opera connects Europe directly to the sources of gas in the Caspian Sea and in Central Asia -- and the idea was to circumvent Russia altogether.
Europeans, though, have had problems realizing their $5 billion project. So far, Nabucco exists only on paper. And it's still unclear where the gas for the pipeline would come from. There is an agreement with Azerbaijan, but experts doubt that sources there are sufficient to supply the massive project.
>>Is this part of a possible cold war starting between Europe and Russia, too? We know that Europe wants to become the world's superpower, and if Russia is vying for that position too, there either has to be a conflict, or one has to withdraw their bid, and cede to the other. I think the Bible points to Europe becoming the next(and last) real superpower, and stories like this make me doubt that Putin wants to step away from being at the seat of the empire. Perhaps he will be content with the influence he has at home, but this article points to a different Putin.
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