What
do they mean
globinfo
freexchange
The
new agreement between Russia and Turkey for the construction of a 63
bcm gas pipeline during Putin's visit in Ankara yesterday, is
probably another win of Putin in the geopolitical field.
From
RT:
“Gazprom
CEO Aleksey Miller said the energy giant will build a massive gas
pipeline that will travel from Russia, transit through Turkey, and
stop at the Greek border – giving Russia access to the
Southern European market. The pipeline will have an annual
capacity of 63 billion cubic meters. A total of 14 bcm will be
delivered to Turkey, which is Gazprom’s second biggest
customer in the region after Germany. Russia’s energy minister
Aleksandr Novak said that the new project will include a
specially-constructed hub on the Turkish-Greek border for
customers in southern Europe.”
“While
the pipeline will be registered as a Russian company, Miller
said that Gazprom will 'consider offers from Turkish partners if
they express an interest in buying into the project.' [...]
Moscow will also reduce the gas price for Turkish customers by
6 percent from January 1, 2015, Putin said. Later, Novak
said the discount could reach 15 percent, subject to
negotiations.”
“Novak
later confirmed that Vladimir Putin personally ordered for the
South Stream project to be mothballed, and its existing facilities
to be repurposed for the new Turkish pipeline. The much-delayed
South Stream was supposed to connect underwater Black Sea
pipelines with a network in Eastern Europe, with Bulgaria as the
entry point.”
|
The
first strong signal from Russia to the EU, is that it has many
alternative ways to bypass sanctions and barriers against other
projects like the South Stream pipeline. Putin clearly expressed his
dissatisfaction about the barriers imposed by the EU concerning the
deployment of South Stream
(http://rt.com/business/210483-putin-russia-gas-turkey/),
and the deal with Turkey showed that he is determined to build
alternatives.
So
far, the EU forced Greece and Bulgaria to play the game according to
the interests of the Western big companies: “Also, the failure
of selling the Greek gas company (DEPA) to Russians, was not
accidental, since in this case, Gazprom would have become the basic
stakeholder of the Greek-Bulgarian pipeline IGB, in which the Greek
company participates. And this means that the supply of Bulgaria and
Romania with gas from Azerbaijan would be impossible. The 180 degree
turn of European Commission is characteristic, since, while appeared
at the start supporting fully the Nabucco pipeline, subsequently
withdrew its support, since Nabucco was no longer competitive against
Russian interests pipeline South Stream.”
(http://failedevolution.blogspot.gr/2013/07/greek-crisis-and-disorientation.html)
However,
the details of the new agreement show that Russia probably wants to
put Greece back in the game, seeing that there are dramatic changes
in the political landscape not only in Greece, but also in Europe
that could change dramatically the geopolitical status.
(http://failedevolution.blogspot.gr/2014/11/basic-reasons-for-which-us-deep-state.html)
At the same time, Russia sees an opportunity to play a key role,
especially in the eastern Mediterranean, therefore seeking agreements
which increase the stability in the region and minimise the
possibility of various conflicts. There was a tension lately between
Greece and Turkey, after Turkey sent a ship to the waters off the
coast of Cyprus for oil and gas exploration.
The
third and probably most significant gain by Putin, is that shields
Russia more effectively from the unpredicted and dangerous expansion
of the jihadists of Islamic State to the north and especially to
Chechnya which would bring trouble to the door of Russia. Through
such deals, Turkey will be forced to defend its soil to protect huge
investments that could contribute significantly to the economy, while
will consider to support or even tolerate the jihadists as they could
grab major energy pipelines.
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