The Russian leader has a record of weaponising fuel supplies and believes his people can endure economic pain longer than western Europe The suspected sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines could be a page ripped straight from Vladimir Putin’s playbook of panic, escalation and misdirection. The former KGB agent’s illegal war on Ukraine resulted in unprecedented Western sanctions against Moscow. But the Russian president is confident that his people can endure economic pain longer and better than Europeans. His calculation is that soaring gas prices and the cost of living crisis in a continent hopelessly addicted to Russian energy will...
