“According to propagandist Solovyov, Finland, Warsaw, the Baltics, Moldova, and even Alaska should be “returned to the Russian Empire.””
Instead, in the real world, Russia had to cut loose one more of its captive territories today - Transnistria, a narrow territory at Moldova’s eastern border with Ukraine, has been occupied by Russia since the early 1990s.
Kyiv Independent reports:
Russia officially halts gas supplies to Moldova’s Transnistria
“The Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom announced on Dec. 28 that it is ending gas supplies to the Russian-occupied region of Transnistria in Moldova, effective Jan. 1, 2025.
While a deal to allow Russian gas to flow to Moldova and other European countries via Ukraine expires at the end of the year, Gazprom said the decision was related to Moldova’s outstanding debt, not problems with transit (to evade liability for not delivering per contract)...
...Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean condemned the decision and denied Russia’s allegations of debt.
“Russia uses energy as a political weapon, turning people in the Transnistrian region, which it controls through its illegally stationed army, into hostages,” Recean said in a social media post.
“The government condemns these oppressive tactics and reiterates that it will not admit any alleged debt, which has been invalidated by an international audit.”
Recean said the Moldovan government was considering a number of legal options in response to Russia’s decision, including international arbitration.
Transnistria is heavily dependent on Russian gas. Since 2022, the roughly 2 billion cubic meters of Gazprom gas flowing to Moldova per year have been used only by the Transnistria region, while the rest of the country has switched to European supplies...
...Alternative transit routes are available for Moldova, however. Russian gas could reach the country via the TurkStream pipeline, flowing to Turkey and then through Bulgaria and Romania to Moldova.
Gazprom has rejected this option. The company announced it was limiting gas supplies to Moldova to “0 cubic meters per day,” citing breach of contract rather than transit issues.”
Crunch time. Time to kick out the remaining Russian troops (Ukraine could help, if they prefer to be shot). Send them a big bill for their lodging.
Newsweek reported (24 Dec): “(Adrian Balutel, Moldovan Preident Sandu’s chief of staff) added that resolving the territorial dispute over Transnistria would require “the complete and unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops, which are illegally stationed on the sovereign territory of the Republic of Moldova.””
Tensions around Russia and Alaska intensified in January 2024 when reports surfaced that Putin was looking into reobtaining Alaska, reviving an effort pushed by Russian media throughout the ongoing war in Ukraine that Moscow could seize the state.
Tensions remain high between North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Russia amid the Russian-Ukraine war as NATO leaders have increasingly warned that direct conflict with Moscow is a realistic danger. This comes after Putin and senior Russian officials have repeatedly threatened nuclear escalation against Kyiv and its Western partners since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
During the recent program, Solovyov said Finland, Warsaw, the Baltics, Moldova, and Alaska should be “returned to the Russian Empire.””Do you think I'm joking when I mention Finland, Warsaw, the Baltics, Moldova? Everything returned to the Russian Empire. And Alaska too, while you're at it,” Solovyov said in a translated video.
Deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia Dmitry Medvedev joked about Alaska in January on X, teasing that “war is unavoidable,” since the State Department said Russia was not getting Alaska back. He added a laughing emoji to the post.
Keir Giles, a senior consulting fellow at Chatham House, previously told Newsweek: “Continued Russian approaches toward U.S. airspace are a reminder that while the bulk of Russia's land forces are tied down in Ukraine, its air and naval forces continue to pose a global threat to its adversaries including the United States. “It's another indicator that Russia is readying itself for confrontation with the West beyond Ukraine, and any break in the fighting there - for instance through a ceasefire - will allow Russia to reconstitute its forces even faster without Ukraine destroying them almost as fast as they are rebuilt.”
https://www.newsweek.com/vladimir-solovyov-calls-alaskas-return-russia-2006979