Merkel said you couldn’t Trade with EU countries on an individual basis. So how does this work?
Everyone likes a bargain. Compared to Russian gas, our gas is a bargain. Europeans are tired of Russia shutting down deliveries to Ukrainian pipelines that feed Europe. Especially in winter.
It’s a twofer. The Russians lose export income. We get oil patch jobs. Long term the Russians have less money for adventuring abroad.
I think what she said was that you couldn’t negotiate unique trade pacts with different countries individually. But selling gas to a specific firm within a specific country is certainly possible.