Free Republic

Russian energy has continued to transit unimpeded through Ukrainian territory every day until now, with the taps being firmly closed on New Year’s Day. Zero Russian gas is flowing to European customers through Ukrainian pipelines for the first time in decades today, confirmation there was to be no last-minute deal to keep the route open, sending energy prices spiking on Tuesday. The route has seen billions of cubic feet of gas delivered since the end of the Cold War, and a five-year contract between Moscow and Kyiv governing the transit of gas continued to be observed, remarkably, right to the...