18 comments on Ukraine vs Russia: Tales of pipelines and dependence
Comments can no longer be added to this story.
User login
Personnel
Editors
Contributors
Peak Oil Primers
Archives
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
- June 2007
- May 2007
- April 2007
- March 2007
- February 2007
- January 2007
- December 2006
- November 2006
- October 2006
- September 2006
- August 2006
- July 2006
- June 2006
- May 2006
- April 2006
- March 2006
Vital Trivia
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
GAIA Host Collective
Terrific info! I guessed at, but never knew exactly how much the Russians & Ukrainians are entangled together into various pipeline spiderwebs. The CFR has an interesting article called the Poisonous Air over Russia which states:
--------------------------------------
The [Litvinenko polonium] incident taps into a broadening sense of unease in the West about developments in Russia, which has grown increasingly assertive as an energy superpower while backtracking on democratic reforms. Last month, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization warned of Russian plans to create a natural gas cartel to use as leverage against Western states, but Russian officials denied this, saying they were committed to offering gas at market prices (Reuters). The most recent criticism came from the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which said
Russia's high-level corruption and expanding state control of sectors such as energy and finance threaten the country's long-term prospects.Key to understanding Russian behavior, write Ian Bremmer and Samuel Charap in the new Washington Quarterly,is the role of the security-business clique known as the "siloviki" (PDF).----------------------
Here is the link to the SILOVIKI PDF. It basically reconfirms alot of the conclusions in your keypost's last 3 paragraphs, but with much more alarming detail.
This is much more interesting than a Tom Clancy spy novel, but obviously nerve-wracking for all concerned Peakniks.
Bob Shaw in Phx,Az Are Humans Smarter than Yeast?
Is Ukraine headed into political and geographic partition? Just found this newsrelease:
-----------------------------
KIEV, Ukraine (Reuters) -- Ukraine's parliament on Friday voted to dismiss the foreign and interior ministers, allies of pro-Western President Viktor Yushchenko.
Deputies approved by 247 votes a resolution sacking Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk, the chief architect of the president's policy of moving Ukraine closer to the West and eventually seeking European Union and NATO membership.
A motion to sack Interior Minister Yuri Lutsenko, a leading figure in the 2004 "Orange Revolution" that helped sweep Yushchenko to power, won 248 votes.
Both tallies were well clear of the 226 required for passage in the 450-seat chamber. Both parliament and Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, Yushchenko's nemesis from the days of the huge 2004 protests, has been at odds for months with the president.
Yushchenko has denounced the action to remove his allies in the cabinet as destabilizing for Ukraine and vowed to challenge them. His allies in the chamber branded the vote a violation of Ukraine's newly amended constitution.
The votes followed a failed attempt to oust Lutsenko on Thursday. Parliament has also vowed to remove Defence Minister Anatoly Hrytsenko and is pursuing an investigation into his activities.
---------------------------------
Bob Shaw in Phx,Az Are Humans Smarter than Yeast?
http://www.eurotrib.com/story/2006/11/28/53913/131
As to your question on internal Ukrainian politics, no question it's nasty, but I still doubt it will lead to a split.