Russia Shuts Off Europe's Oil

[Annie]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2537540,00.html

Russians turn off Europe's oil supply
Tony Halpin in Moscow, Christine Seib and Roger Boyes
# Alarm at Moscow's strong-arm tactics
# Merkel tells The Times 'we need secure energy'
Europe’s oil supplies from Russia were being held to ransom last night as the Kremlin fell into bitter dispute with a former Soviet satellite state.

Moscow abruptly halted millions of barrels of oil destined for the EU via Belarus in an increasingly hostile wrangle with its neighbour.

The move raised further questions over whether Western Europe can trust Mr Putin for its energy supply. Experts said that Russia had a deeply entrenched habit of manipulating oil and gas supplies as a substitute for diplomatic policy...

 

[trobinett]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2537540,00.html

Putin is a person of ill repute, no one should trust him. How he was able to obtain the position of power he has, AND retain it, is AMAZING.

The United States doesn't even consider him an allie anymore, and for good cause.

Personally, I think he's a member of the Russian mafia.

 

[Kagom]

Putin is a person of ill repute, no one should trust him. How he was able to obtain the position of power he has, AND retain it, is AMAZING.

The United States doesn't even consider him an allie anymore, and for good cause.

Personally, I think he's a member of the Russian mafia.

Rigged elections, man.

 

[ekrem]

Putin is a person of ill repute, no one should trust him. How he was able to obtain the position of power he has, AND retain it, is AMAZING.

The United States doesn't even consider him an allie anymore, and for good cause.

Personally, I think he's a member of the Russian mafia.

Russia is no democracy, it will not be, and its people does not want it either.
By western do-gooder mentality in reliance to Russia, "We just want to free you from your dictator alike government" Russia was tricked one time in 90s.
What then happened was sellout of Russia.
Putin now reverses this, as you could see by Chodorkowski or actually quasi-disappropriation of Shell from Sachalin Ressources field in the Pacifik.

The West, especially the media, gets its informations about Russian population from Russian citizens which are critics and fled Russia to emigrate into West. Such an emigration spot is London where many influential Russian magnates likve, such as Beresowski.
In same Logic Non US-citicens must get their view about USA from Michael Moore. But by M.M. you see that he hates his country this is being overlooked by Western Media when they give room to these emigrated Russians. And MEdia regard them as only true Russians as if they would know more about Russia than the millions at home-remained.

When we look at Putins bilance in governing Russia, you can not say anything except his reign was a full access. Russia is even now able to pay back its debts to Parisian Club, and before schedule. Germany for example did not wanted this pre-schedule repaying, as German fiinance minister calculated interest rates into comeing budgets.

Under Putin, for a short period, Russian Oil production rocketed to about 9,2 million barrels a day, kicking Saudi Arabia by Barrel production from first place.
Gazprom, Transneft, LukOIL and others are Big-Players in Energy business.
Under Putin Gazprom Kicked even Microsoft from being 3rd biggest company:

In April, Gazprom knocked back Microsoft as the world's third-largest company by market value. Microsoft was valued at about $246 billion, Gazprom at $270 billion. Already the world's biggest natural-gas company by output and reserves (16% of the total), and with its shares more than tripling in the past 12 months, Gazprom is on the way to displacing Irving, Texas-based ExxonMobil Corp as the world's biggest company, now valued at $381 billion. General Electric is currently the second-biggest at $358 billion.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/HE26Ag01.html

Russian firms like Evraz, Novolipetsk, Severstal are one of the biggest Steel and Aluminium producers in this world.
Russia is monopolizing key sectors of Industry. Especially in ressource sector, as Russia has vast ressources be it Oil, gas, ore and and and and and and and.
Russia is very huge.
Magnates in Russia with their companies, which did not bow down to Kremlin where just breaked-up. Most prominent case was YUKOS Oil company (Chodorkoswky).

You can call Putin what you want, but he is definately the undisputed Energy Czar. Like Rasputin it is Gasputin, but in global dimensions.
I read from an Analyst, that every dollar over 27$ per Barrel goes direct into Kremlin budget. Now calculate yourself that Russia produces over 9 Mio Barrel a day, and companies like Gazprom, Tansneft etc. are owned by Kremlin direct minimum by a certain percent.
So Kremlin does not profit from Russian Companies being Energybig players by their taxes payed, but it owns companies like Gazprom of 51% shares direct.

By Natural Gas it is even more dramatic.

Gazprom employs 330,000 people and supplies more than 8% of Russia's GDP. It is currently controlled 51% by the Russian state. Since 2001, Gazprom's executive director has been Alexei Miller, who is extremely close to Putin.

Gazprom had a gas output of 547.2 billion cubic meters in 2005. This is equivalent to 9.42 million barrels of oil a day, or the daily extraction output in Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil supplier. Gazprom's market value may soon reach as much as $1 trillion

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/HE26Ag01.html

From those Russians i have met personally, and read from internet in other Non-English Forums i can say, that they are very happy with Putins guided democracy.
But Putin, like Bush is currently in its second ter, and he can not be president again.
Candidates are Medvedev (Vice-Premier), Iwanow (foreign minister) and female Moscow governor, whose name i do not remember.

Who comes to Vladimir Putin? This topic political Moscow at present to respond directly, has something from Hautgout. Because the president is present and popular, he by the people as from the elite as energetic and successfully is noticed. The agreement rate is with more than three quarters of the asked potential voters. A Russia without it can imagine actually hardly someone at present. Putin would see nearly 60 per cent gladly for further four years in the Kremlin.

http://translate.google.com/transla...&hl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&prev=/language_tools

 

[akiboy]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2537540,00.html

Does this bloke Putin want a Cold War again?

 

[akiboy]

Putin is a person of ill repute, no one should trust him. How he was able to obtain the position of power he has, AND retain it, is AMAZING.

The United States doesn't even consider him an allie anymore, and for good cause.

Personally, I think he's a member of the Russian mafia.

The Mafia wouldn't trust him. He was a former KGB guy though.

 

[Kagom]

The Mafia wouldn't trust him. He was a former KGB guy though.

Vladimir Putin ist ein scheiskopf.

 

[akiboy]

Vladimir Putin ist ein scheiskopf.

Pardon my German Kagom but I don't understand what you are saying.