Posted on 01/01/2025 1:16:12 PM PST by E. Pluribus Unum
Natural gas stopped flowing through a pipeline that runs from Russia through Ukraine on Wednesday, according to officials in both countries. The effects of the halt, though long expected, could ripple through Europe’s energy sector and potentially affect Moscow’s ability to fund its war in Ukraine.
Here’s what you need to know:
What happened?
Ukraine refused to renew an agreement that allowed Russia to send natural gas through a pipeline to Europe. The deal was honored even after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, kicking off the bloodiest European conflict since World War II.
The Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhgorod pipeline was built in the Soviet era to carry Siberian gas to European markets. It became the main conduit to Ukraine’s border with Slovakia from Siberia, passing through the town of Sudzha — which is now under the control of Ukrainian military forces — in Russia’s Kursk region.
The pipeline was Russia’s last major gas corridor to Europe following the 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany — probably by Ukraine — and the closure of a route through Belarus to Poland.
Why did this happen now?
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine has warned for months that he would not renew the five-year contract, which expired Dec. 31. The deal was signed before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but after its seizure of Crimea.
Ukraine and its Western allies want to undermine Moscow’s ability to fund its war effort and to limit the Kremlin’s ability to use energy as leverage in Europe. Analysts say the closure of the pipeline could reduce Russia’s revenue from gas sales by about $6.5 billion a year.
But it carries some risks for Ukraine. Russia could decide to bomb Ukraine’s...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Slovakia and Hungary survived without Russian gas in WW2.
If the Russians can’t buy Chinese chattels, Russian life will go on.
Ordinary Americans in WW2 survived with less gasoline, sugar, etc.
Zelensky canceled the presidential election expected to occur in May 2024, and the election remains suspended indefinitely. For this reason, Putin has said Zelensky is not legitimately president. I do wonder if other nations will come to the same conclusion when their gas is cut off for the coldest months in winter.
Good thing nothing has changed since then.
If a Russian doesn’t show up for work, he’ll have less bread and meat to eat.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_power_stations_in_Hungary
Something like 20% of the natural gas capacity sat unused.
About 30% more will get lost.
About 30% more of total capacity will get lost.
So guess who makes up for this loss....clue...USA
“Approximately 54,7% of the total production of 27,149 GWH of electricity in Slovakia was obtained from nuclear power stations, 21% from conventional power stations, 14.4% from hydro stations and 8.9% from renewable sources. “
https://www.trade.gov/energy-resource-guide-slovakia-renewable-energy
maybe not:
“Russia’s Gazprom supplies gas to Hungary via the Turkstream pipeline through Turkey and Serbia.”
https://www.naturalgasworld.com/hungarys-energy-supply-is-safe-foreign-minister-says-112736
WIKI
Each ration stamp had a generic drawing of an airplane, gun, tank, aircraft carrier, ear of wheat, fruit, etc. and a serial number. Some stamps also had alphabetic lettering. The kind and amount of rationed commodities were not specified on most of the stamps and were not defined until later when local newspapers published, for example, that beginning on a specified date, one airplane stamp was required (in addition to cash) to buy one pair of shoes and one stamp number 30 from ration book four was required to buy five pounds of sugar. The commodity amounts changed from time to time depending on availability. Red stamps were used to ration meat and butter, and blue stamps were used to ration processed foods.
To enable making change for ration stamps, the government issued “red point” tokens to be given in change for red stamps, and “blue point” tokens in change for blue stamps. The red and blue tokens were about the size of dimes (16 millimetres (0.63 in)) and were made of thin compressed wood fiber material, because metals were in short supply.
A national speed limit of 35 miles per hour (56 km/h) was imposed to save fuel and rubber for tires.
Sugar was the first consumer commodity rationed, with all sales ended on 27 April 1942 and resumed on 5 May with a ration of 1⁄2 pound (8 oz; 227 g) per person per week, half of normal consumption.
Coffee was rationed nationally on 29 November 1942 to 1 pound (454 g) every five weeks, about half of normal consumption, in part because of German attacks on shipping from Brazil.
As of 1 March 1942, dog food could no longer be sold in tin cans, and manufacturers switched to dehydrated versions. As of 1 April 1942, anyone wishing to purchase a new toothpaste tube, then made from metal, had to turn in an empty one.
By the end of 1942, ration coupons were used for nine other items: typewriters, gasoline, bicycles, shoes, rubber footwear, silk, nylon, fuel oil, and stoves. Meat, lard, shortening and food oils, cheese, butter, margarine, processed foods (canned, bottled, and frozen), dried fruits, canned milk, firewood and coal, jams, jellies, and fruit butter were rationed by November 1943.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationing_in_the_United_States
That's right up there with "Russia should just go home".
Maybe more will flow through Erdogan’s pipeline?
Why now? I think that the bitterness toward Russia in Ukraine is so extreme right now that Ukraine would cut of their nose to spite the Russians. I also think that some feel this decrease in natural gas to Europe along with diminished revenues to Russia, might help Trump broker a deal to end or pause the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Trump has nothing to put on table, Russia is aware that it was going to happen and is diverting trade to China, China is reducing imports from the US at the same time.
Blackmail
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