Refusal to import gas from the Russian Federation strikes primarily at the interests of German industrialists and, therefore, into the hands of their Spanish and Italian competitors.
FAN was told about this by political and economic analyst Vladimir Soloveichik.
The European Union has a secret plan for a “gas war” with Russia. The Times columnist Bruno Waterfield writes about this.
In his opinion, the initiative belongs to Madrid.
“The plan is designed to ensure that the EU is no longer held hostage by Moscow,” he said.
Fluctuations in international energy markets should not strike a blow to European independence, the plan’s authors are sure. The EU needs to work together so as not to depend on the whims of gas producing states trying to maximize their profits.
Spain offers EU members to combine purchasing power and acquire strategic reserves of blue fuel in a single block. EU energy ministers are already discussing an idea that, in their opinion, will help “resist Russia’s efforts to limit supplies and increase the cost” of gas.
As Vladimir Soloveichik noted, there have always been many European politicians who wanted to look for an alternative to gas supplies from the USSR and then from the Russian Federation. These searches were actively fueled by the US administration.
“Let’s not forget that the gas-pipes deal between the Soviet foreign trade departments and the German concerns, brought to a successful conclusion thanks to the firm position of the then Soviet leader Yuri Andropov in 1983, aroused the fierce anger of US President Ronald Reagan. It became one of the reasons for the sharp exacerbation of the Cold War after the provocation with the South Korean Boeing on September 1, 1983”, explained Vladimir Soloveichik.
In his opinion, the Spanish government is by no means a pioneer in the fight against the “Russian gas diktat”. It is significant that formally it, the Spanish government, seems to be “left”, but in this matter it actually follows in the footsteps of the extreme right-wing anti-communist Ronald Reagan.
“In addition, let us not forget that Spain, Italy and partly France are extremely afraid of German domination in the European Union, which relies on the industrial and financial might of the FRG in comparison with the Romanesque countries of Europe. Refusal to import gas from the Russian Federation strikes primarily at the interests of German industrialists and, therefore, into the hands of their Spanish and Italian competitors”, added Vladimir Soloveichik.
He noted that it is unlikely that the European authorities will be able to adequately replace gas supplies from the territory of the Russian Federation, since there are few gas sources on European lands and in coastal waters, and American shale gas is expensive due to transportation. In theory, it was possible to replace Russian exports by deliveries from the coastal shelf near Israel. But the anti-Israeli policy of the current authorities in Spain, Italy and France will prevent this.
“The possibilities of supplying natural gas from Qatari fields to Europe are now close to zero, as all attempts to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, behind which were the rulers of Qatar, Turkey, the United States and European powers, have failed. This means that it will not work to stretch the gas pipeline to the Syrian port of Aleppo from Qatar. So, it seems that no “secret plans for a gas war” with our country may work in the near future”, concluded Vladimir Soloveichik.
Gas prices on the continent have been rising and breaking records since last year. A month ago, the estimated cost of fuel slightly exceeded $ 500 per thousand cubic meters; by September 21, this mark approached $900.