Article

2019-11-08 Europe

Denmark approves Nord Stream 2, ensuring the deal will go through. US gas guarantees rejected.

Nord Stream 2, the controversial Russian natural-gas pipeline project, has received the last permission it needs to close the distance between the Leningrad Region and the Baltic coast of Germany. It’s now probably too late for the U.S. to prevent Russia from finishing the project by the end of this year.

Nord Stream 2 is part of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plan to send natural gas to Europe without needing to go through Ukraine. The new pipeline will be able to carry 55 billion cubic meters of natural gas, more than half of what Russia now pumps through the Ukrainian system, and would mean for Ukraine a loss of $3 billion a year in gas transit revenues. The U.S. would like to prevent this, and also keep relatively cheap Russian gas from becoming an obstacle to increasing exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas to Europe. President Donald Trump has argued that Germany is too dependent on Russian gas, and has repeatedly threatened European companies involved in the project with sanctions.

Meanwhile, Russia has rushed to lay the pipe. On Oct. 1, Gazprom, the Russian gas export champion, said construction was 83% finished, with 2,042 kilometers (1,270 miles) laid across the bottom of the Baltic Sea. There had been a snag, though: For two years, Denmark put off granting permission for the section that was to pass through its territorial waters. On Wednesday, Denmark finally granted it, allowing the pipeline to take the shortest possible route, and Gazprom says that section can be built in five weeks.
Obviously they don't see Russia as a threat, and view economic engagement as the best way to avoid war. And if they're not worried about it, why should we be worried about it?

Posted by Herb McCoy 2019-11-08 00:00|| || Front Page|| [9 views ] Top

#1 Obviously, they are not sure that Trump revolution (and it is a revolution) will continue.
And dealing with Putin, or his successors, is (a lot) better than dealing with any current Dems.

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-11-08 01:17|| 2019-11-08 01:17|| Front Page Top

#2 Personally I favour the competition. 3 billion in transport fees is pure rent-seeking.

Posted by Bright Pebbles 2019-11-08 03:10|| 2019-11-08 03:10|| Front Page Top

#3 Russia has legitimate interests in western and Northern Europe. These interests will continue to exist, and will continue to be pursued by Russia's government, regardless of whether it's headed by Putin or a future pro-Western liberal Russian leader.

We need an accommodation with Russia. Time to get realistic and stop this absurd swinging from reckless provocation to "kick me please" Obama-style incompetence.

Get our policy on a stable, sensible above all realist track vis a vis Russia. We need their help to contain the real threat to our survival, which is CHINA.

Posted by Lex 2019-11-08 04:10|| 2019-11-08 04:10|| Front Page Top

#4 Remember if Europe's peoples buy Russian hydrocarbons they don't buy Muslim hydrocarbons

Posted by Bright Pebbles 2019-11-08 04:40|| 2019-11-08 04:40|| Front Page Top

#5 regardless of whether it's headed by Putin or a future pro-Western liberal Russian leader

About a minute in

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-11-08 04:58|| 2019-11-08 04:58|| Front Page Top

#6 "Relations between states are not built in the same manner as they are between people..."

Well, yes. Putin's remarks in that clip are 100% sensible, clear, consistent and comprehensible.

He is speaking like a normal leader of a normal country who sees his job as the promotion of his country's national interests. It's not his job, or our role, to deny obvious reality and pretend that these are not valid Russian interests.

The task for Russia's leadership and our leaders is to get to a mutual understanding of those interests, articulate which of those conflict with vital interests of our own, and work it out.

As opposed to flogging hysterical tall tales, bullshit and outright lies for 3+ years, drawing nonexistent "red lines" in places where we have no clear interests and no real friends, and waxing apoplectic about a tiny peninsula in Russia's backyard that has for over 200 years been considered and considered itself not only Russian in nature but solidly, ineradicably inside Russia's sphere of interest.

Posted by Lex 2019-11-08 05:12|| 2019-11-08 05:12|| Front Page Top

#7 As opposed to flogging hysterical tall tales, bullshit and outright lies for 3+ years

IMO, it's been their ("western" leftards) standard MO. You notice it now, because Trump is the first POTUS in decades not to geek.

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-11-08 05:23|| 2019-11-08 05:23|| Front Page Top

#8 Hunter Biden was supposed to prevent this, I suppose, so I am for it!

Posted by Bobby 2019-11-08 10:57|| 2019-11-08 10:57|| Front Page Top

#9 On no other issue do the Shitshow's anti-Trump clowns demonstrate so much stupidity, bad faith and sheer incoherence as our policy toward Russia.

These are the same people who ignored Russia's legitimate interests in the Clinton era, breeding the almost-universal resentment and hatred of the US across Russian society.

Then Zero his Pajama Boy foreign policy adviser-- the dude fresh out of his mom's basement and his MFA in Creative Writing program-- this ignorant crew went to the other extreme and promised Putin and Medvdev they would reverse Bush and not sell Patriot missiles to our ally Poland.

Then, barely three years after these fools heaped scorn on Romney for calling Russia a threat, they told us that Putin was ... the biggest threat to all human health 'n' holiness since Genghis Hitler Mussolini.

In the process these idiots are pushing us toward a war footing with Russia. If their incoherence were not so dangerous, it would merit only scorn.

But their stupidity and hysterics aren't funny. They're deadly.

These Shitshow Clowns are pushing us into a war with a nation that should be a partner for us against China and jihadist Islam.

Posted by Lex 2019-11-08 16:51|| 2019-11-08 16:51|| Front Page Top

#10 Agree (95%) with #10.

Posted by Whiskey Mike 2019-11-08 17:29|| 2019-11-08 17:29|| Front Page Top

#11 ^
Keeping the white christians divided. Necessary for the global assimilation and homogenization of races, and creating the ultimate 'Open Society'.

Posted by Dron66046 2019-11-08 17:38|| 2019-11-08 17:38|| Front Page Top

01:38 Grom the Reflective
00:17 EMS Artifact