Trump warned Europe about neglected military spending and dependency on Russia for natural resources.
“Trump warned Europe about neglected military spending and dependency on Russia for natural resources.”
Talk about dependency on Russia for natural resources, and Russia’s use of it as a coercive tool, just look at landlocked Mongolia, which borders only Russia and China.
With a population less than half that of New York City, Mongolia imports 95% of its petroleum products and over 20% of electricity from Russia. Russia has repeatedly throttled the supply over the years to coerce Mongolian policies.
With the harsh sub-zero Mongolian Winter approaching soon (far from temperature moderating oceans), cities would be hard pressed to survive without Russian oil products. Although they generate most of their electricity with domestically produced coal, petroleum fuels are needed to mine and transport it (as well as transporting most else).
Even in theory, only China could possibly bail them out from a Russian embargo, but Mongolia relies on Russia as a counter-weight against Chinese colonization. In fact, the Soviet Union liberated Mongolia from Chinese colonization, making it the second communist country on Earth (no longer communist since 1990, or socialist since 1992).
Mongolia is more dependent on Russia, and more isolated from any other alternative, than the rest of Central Asia.
That is why Putin (or a double) could force a visit in defiance of the ICC warrant.