Posted on 09/08/2005 11:09:02 AM PDT by lizol
Russia: Putin, Schroeder Ratify Pipeline Deal By Claire Bigg
Russian and German energy firms today signed a deal to build a $5.7 billion pipeline under the Baltic Sea to link the two countries. The signing comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin is in Berlin to meet German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder today. The pipeline will allow Russia to boost its gas exports to the lucrative Western European market without paying transit fees to Poland and Ukraine. Poland yesterday attacked the deal for having been made without consulting the rest of the European Union.
Moscow, 8 September 2005 (RFE/RL) -- President Putin oversaw the signing of deal for the North European Gas Pipeline along with Chancellor Schroeder during his visit to Berlin today.
The $5.7 billion pipeline is a joint project between Russia’s state-owned energy giant Gazprom and several German companies. It will run under the Baltic Sea from Vyborg, north of Russia’s St. Petersburg, to Greifswald, on the northeastern coast of Germany.
Eric Kraus, a chief strategist at Sovlink Securities, a brokerage firm based in Moscow, sees the deal as a vital project marking a deepening of Russian-German economic ties. The pipeline, he said, will also generate major profits for both countries.
“This is important for Germany first of all from the energy security standpoint, secondly because Putin and Mr. Schroeder have very close personal relations and German companies are very much involved in the Russian economy and will be involved in these projects," Kraus said. "So it’s very much a win-win proposition for both countries.”
Schroeder on 7 September described the pipeline as a "groundbreaking step" toward reducing Germany's reliance on oil.
For Russia, the new pipeline paves the way for a significant increase in gas exports. It will also enable Gazprom to stop paying transit fees to Poland and Ukraine. Russia has been eager for its energy exports to bypass these two countries, which have increasingly troubled relations with Moscow.
Kraus said the Baltic Sea pipeline offers a more reliable route for Russia to pump its gas to Western European’s lucrative markets.
“Russia does not want to have her oil and gas exports threatened by some of the transit countries, in particular Poland," Kraus said. "This will increase the volume of Russian gas exports to Europe and will to some extent increase the security of those exports.”
The project has come under fire in Eastern Europe, which also relies heavily on Russian gas. Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski on 7 September slammed Berlin and Moscow for putting their own interests first and failing to consult Germany’s EU partner countries about the deal.
Schroeder, however, sought to soothe Poland by describing the pipeline as "a project on a European dimension" that other countries can join.
Observers say the timing of the signing ceremony, just 10 days before Germany's parliamentary elections, testifies to the importance of the deal for Moscow.
The signing was originally planned for October, but with Schroeder -- Putin’s close ally -- trailing in the polls, it was moved forward to 8 September.
maybe Skoda?
Ah damn Czechs! But there is solution, recently Ukrainians bought factory in Zeran! So Zaporozec :)
:-)
The stupid socialist Schroeder did not use the proposed deal to put pressure on Russia to disengage from Iran. Now he is as well selling out Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, what a moron!
What about a nice suitable car from North Korea?
There are for sure no German parts in it.
P.S.
All those "strategic" effusions about pipelines are completely theoretical. Since the Iraq crusade everybody knows, that a pipeline can't be saved against "accidents" or however you call it. Al Queda gives prove to this every single day. I am sure that your "Grom" (or something comparable) could solve the problem silently, efficiently and in no time if the security of Poland would be in real danger.
Something funny happend to Schroeder while Putin visited him in Berlin:
Putin said in his speech that he will stay a friend of Schroeder (!) no matter if he looses his job (of being German chancellor) or not (!). After that he met with Angela Merkel in the Russian embassy.
Maybe Putin is sometimes closer to the truth than we all were thinking.
BuHuHahahaha!
Uh well - German eletronics, German machine parts and German interior etc. etc. etc. in your FIAT. Maybe a YUGO from Serbia would be a solution. :-)
It will be impossible to buy a normal European car without any German parts, since the German automotive industry is the key of European car manufacturing. All car-manufacturers are more or less dependent from German or (!) French deliveries in Europe. That is the bitter truth. Of course you are a free man to make your own free desicions and I understand your anger about my country. The bad news for you are, that most of your compatriots are absolutely gung ho to buy one of those shiny status symbols from BMW, Mercedes or VW out of Germany. They absolutely do not care about pipelines.
BTW - If you try to damage the German economy you damage the Polish economy too, since Germany is by far the biggest economic partner of Poland on this little planet. Polish products are used in German cars that are sold in Moscow. You see - our world is getting smaller.
Schroeder set our relations back in time more than 50 years.
This is ridiculous. Poland is acting in its well understood own interest too. Just take the desicion to deploy American F-16 fighters and to get in return a Opel (GM - American - You do not want to buy a Opel - do you?) factory to Silesia. Poland did not buy German products in this case and I understand it very well, since the Opel-payback-deal was the most profitable solution to Poland. Therefore it is quite normal that we make common business with Russia too. We can not ask for Polands opinion in each transaction we do. Germany does not expect to have a share in every Polish deal with the rest of the world either.
'the boycotte of German goods will cost them much. ' megalomania
I don't understand Why business relationship between German & Russia bothering Poland? This pipline will go to German through the baltic sea, it is favoroubly for both countries one will accept the energy from the country which sell the gas & it will be much more cheaper then to receive gas transited through several country boards, another one will have a direct exit to the markets of the consumers in future they plan to prolong the pipilile to the UK. So the tube is nor going through Poland then what bothering you?
Ahhh, nice that this was at least included in the article!!
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