Golly gee, but those Jew S A and NATO sanctions really are hurting the Russkies, eh?--Russian gas revenues rise by 85%, suckers

Apollonian

Guest Columnist

Russia’s Gas Giant Will See Revenues Surge 85% This Year​

By Tsvetana Paraskova - Sep 09, 2022, 7:00 AM CDT

Link: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-...ant-Will-See-Revenues-Surge-85-This-Year.html

Russia’s gas giant Gazprom is set to rake in 85% higher revenues this year, to around $100 billion, as natural gas prices surged following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the significant cut to Russian pipeline gas exports to Europe, an analyst told the Financial Times on Friday.
By choking supply to Europe, Gazprom has driven natural gas prices three times higher than last year’s price, which more than offsets the lower volumes Russia is sending to Europe, Ron Smith, an oil and gas analyst at BCS Global Markets, told FT.
“You can make a solid case that Gazprom will earn more from supplying less gas,” according to the analyst.

After having gradually cut flows via the key route to Germany all summer, blaming gas turbine repair issues, Gazprom said last week that the Nord Stream gas pipeline would remain closed indefinitely. The Kremlin blamed on Monday the Western sanctions for this situation.
“When it went offline on 31 August, Nord Stream 1’s 32mcm/day flows represented about 3% of total European supply. While a small amount, these molecules will need to be replaced by much more expensive methods – either drawing additional LNG from the global market or by destroying demand in Europe,” Thomas Rodgers, gas markets analyst at Independent Commodity Intelligence Services (ICIS), said on the day on which Gazprom said Nord Stream would halt supply indefinitely.
As of September 2, remaining Russian flows to Europe accounted for about 7% of European supply, including LNG sendout, compared to more than a third of all supply to Europe coming from Russia at this time last year, ICIS notes.
The EU is looking to limit Putin’s revenues from gas, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday the Commission would propose a price cap on Russian gas as “We must cut Russia's revenues which Putin uses to finance this atrocious war against Ukraine.”
Also on Wednesday, Vladimir Putin threatened the West that Russia would stop supplying all energy products to Europe if the EU and its Western allies impose price caps on Russian oil and natural gas.
Several EU member states are opposed to the Commission’s plan on a price cap on Russian gas amid concerns that Putin would retaliate with a complete halt of all pipeline gas deliveries to Europe.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
 

Europe splitting on Ukraine as energy crisis looms

East-West divide in EU widening as Italy moves towards easing on Moscow while Baltics and Eastern Europe stand firm behind Kiev
By RICHARD JAVAD HEYDARIAN SEPTEMBER 13, 2022

Link: https://asiatimes.com/2022/09/europe-splitting-on-ukraine-as-energy-crisis-looms/

PrintDemonstrators protest in front of the European Parliament after a special plenary session on the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the European Union’s headquarters in Brussels. Image: Twitter / Screengrab

FLORENCE – “Unity of Europe is a paramount concern, as dividing us is one of the main objectives of the war waged by Russia,” declared French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this month.
Macron, who has billed himself as Europe’s top leader since the departure of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, has sought to maintain internal coherence and cohesion within the European Union (EU) while also maintaining functional communication channels with Russia amid the raging war in Ukraine.
After closing ranks and displaying remarkable unity in face of Russia’s aggression earlier this year, however, cracks are beginning to appear within the EU.

On one hand, Macron enraged many leaders in the Baltics and Eastern Europe when he characterized them as “warmongers” and insisted that “a few states on our eastern flanks” should not be allowed to “act alone” against Russia.

Meanwhile, populist parties, many of them with pro-Kremlin sympathies, have been gaining ground in major capitals, most especially in Italy. Latest polls suggest that a far-right coalition, led by Giorgia Meloni (Brothers of Italy) and flanked by Matteo Salvini (Northern League) and Silvio Berlusconi (Forza Italia), is set to take the helm of Rome later this month.
In a bid to win over mainstream voters, Meloni has struck a more traditional line on the Ukraine crisis, but her key allies and other European populist forces in the region will likely press for the reversal of anti-Russia sanctions ahead of a looming energy crisis this winter as Moscow curtails gas supplies.
Italy-Giorgia-Meloni-.jpg

Italy’s Giorgia Meloni makes a point. Image: Twitter

After spending decades on the margins of EU-level decision-making in Brussels, the Baltics and Eastern Europe have managed to gain a greater voice in continental politics in recent months.
This partly reflects their correct assessment of the likelihood of Russia’s kinetic action against Ukraine, which major Western European nations such as France repeatedly dismissed until the 11th hour.


Following his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this year, Macron even insisted that he had secured assurance against a full-scale war over Ukraine.
“President Putin assured me of his readiness to engage,” Macron confidently said following his visit to Kremlin in early February. “There is no security for the Europeans if there is no security for Russia,” he added.
Since the advent of war, Baltic and Eastern European countries have also taken up the cudgels for Ukraine, pressing for expanded military and humanitarian assistance to Kiev.
The Baltic state of Estonia has, on a per capita basis, been the biggest contributor to both humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine in recent months. In gross numbers, Poland has been the largest contributor in the EU, and second only to the US within the NATO alliance.
The scale of their assistance to Ukraine can’t be overstated. Last month, Poland signed a US$5.8 billion defense deal with South Korea in order to refurbish its armory, which has been heavily depleted due to large-scale military assistance to neighboring Ukraine.

Aside from direct aid, the EU’s eastern flank has also shown greater willingness to make economic sacrifices amid the knock-on effects of new sweeping sanctions on Russia’s energy exports and financial sector.
Despite suffering from a 23% inflation rate, the highest on the continent, Estonians have largely backed a new wave of sanctions against the Kremlin.

Ukraine-Estonia-Flags-Protest.jpg

A protester holds Ukrainian and Estonian flags during a protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Image: Twitter / SOPA / LightRocket via Getty Images

In Poland, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has approved a raft of new legislation, including a moratorium on mortgage payments, in order to blunt the effects of Russia sanctions and Moscow’s response.
Having spent centuries within Moscow’s sphere of influence, EU’s eastern flank members have generally advocated for a far tougher stance, including the imposition of blanket visa bans against Russian citizens.
Last week, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics announced that Baltic countries, including Estonia and Lithuania, are set to almost completely shutter their borders, with few exceptions, for Russian citizens holding Schengen visas.


Following a meeting last week, eight Baltic and Nordic foreign ministers announced a joint agreement that “in principle” heavily restricts the entry of Russian citizens into the EU. National governments are yet to finalize details of the new agreement, which will likely face heavy scrutiny in Brussels.
“What we have seen in the last couple of weeks and months, is that the number of border crossings by Russian citizens holding Schengen visas have dramatically increased. This is becoming a public security issue, this is also an issue of a moral and political nature,” Latvia’s diplomatic chief said.
Despite gaining a greater voice within the EU, there are still lingering tensions within the bloc. A Polish member of the European Parliament recently complained that leaders in Paris and Berlin “still aren’t listening and continue to get it wrong. This means that their policy towards Russia was intentional and not based on any misunderstanding,”

Having resisted full-scale sanctions on Moscow’s energy exports, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has also opposed calls for a complete travel ban on Russian citizens.
For his part, Macron has insisted on the need for maintaining open communication lines with Moscow. “We must assume that we can talk to everyone, especially those with whom we disagree,” the French president said earlier this month, just a day after Russian giant Gazprom stopped gas supplies to its French counterpart, Engie.
Putin_and_Macron_meeting_with_a_large_table.jpeg

Macron and Putin have maintained lines of communication, though often at a distance. Image: Handout

With Russia sanctions driving up inflation across Europe and sparking massive protests in key countries, Kremlin-friendly populists have been gaining ground across the continent. This is most especially the case in Italy, which has been plunged into political turmoil following the collapse of the centrist coalition led by former prime minister Mario Draghi.
In recent weeks, the far-right coalition led by Meloni has gained a double-digit lead over their center-left rivals under the Democratic Party. Sensing her political moment, the willy populist known for her ideological dexterity, has vowed to stay the course on Russia sanctions.
Yet her top allies Salvini and Berlusconi are seen as broadly sympathetic to the Kremlin, no doubt influenced by the rising cost of living and a looming energy crisis in the EU’s third-largest economy. Salvini’s electoral base in northern Italy has been heavily hit by rising energy costs and declining business with Moscow.
For his part, former leader Berlusconi has had a long history of cozy relations with Putin. Referring to allegations of high-level contacts between Russian diplomats and right-wing Italian leaders in recent months, members of the former ruling coalition have gone so far as accusing Moscow of facilitating the downfall of the Draghi government.

“We want to know whether it was Putin who brought down the Draghi government. If that was the case it would be of the utmost gravity,” said Enrico Letta, leader of the center-left Democratic Party
But Salvini has dismissed such allegations as baseless accusations by a “desperate and divided left, with some foolish servant in some newsroom [who] passes their time to look for fascists, Russians and racists which don’t exist.”
A top member of Berlusconi’s Forza Italia has similarly dismissed accusations of pro-Kremlin sympathies in the party by insisting that “[a]ny change of position must be taken at the European and NATO level” and that anti-Russia “sanctions are inevitable and we must continue to impose them.”

It’s unclear whether the impending victory of a far-right coalition in Italy will dramatically alter the country’s foreign policy, especially on Ukraine.
What’s clear is that there are simmering tensions within the EU on how far they should go in supporting Ukraine militarily and diplomatically against Russia, which is leveraging its stranglehold on Europe’s energy markets to political and economic effect.

Print
Ukraine-Europe-Protest.jpg

Demonstrators protest in front of the European Parliament after a special plenary session on the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the European Union’s headquarters in Brussels. Image: Twitter / Screengrab

FLORENCE – “Unity of Europe is a paramount concern, as dividing us is one of the main objectives of the war waged by Russia,” declared French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this month.
Macron, who has billed himself as Europe’s top leader since the departure of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, has sought to maintain internal coherence and cohesion within the European Union (EU) while also maintaining functional communication channels with Russia amid the raging war in Ukraine.
After closing ranks and displaying remarkable unity in face of Russia’s aggression earlier this year, however, cracks are beginning to appear within the EU.
On one hand, Macron enraged many leaders in the Baltics and Eastern Europe when he characterized them as “warmongers” and insisted that “a few states on our eastern flanks” should not be allowed to “act alone” against Russia.

Meanwhile, populist parties, many of them with pro-Kremlin sympathies, have been gaining ground in major capitals, most especially in Italy. Latest polls suggest that a far-right coalition, led by Giorgia Meloni (Brothers of Italy) and flanked by Matteo Salvini (Northern League) and Silvio Berlusconi (Forza Italia), is set to take the helm of Rome later this month.
In a bid to win over mainstream voters, Meloni has struck a more traditional line on the Ukraine crisis, but her key allies and other European populist forces in the region will likely press for the reversal of anti-Russia sanctions ahead of a looming energy crisis this winter as Moscow curtails gas supplies.
Italy-Giorgia-Meloni-.jpg

Italy’s Giorgia Meloni makes a point. Image: Twitter

After spending decades on the margins of EU-level decision-making in Brussels, the Baltics and Eastern Europe have managed to gain a greater voice in continental politics in recent months.
This partly reflects their correct assessment of the likelihood of Russia’s kinetic action against Ukraine, which major Western European nations such as France repeatedly dismissed until the 11th hour.

Following his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this year, Macron even insisted that he had secured assurance against a full-scale war over Ukraine.
“President Putin assured me of his readiness to engage,” Macron confidently said following his visit to Kremlin in early February. “There is no security for the Europeans if there is no security for Russia,” he added.
Since the advent of war, Baltic and Eastern European countries have also taken up the cudgels for Ukraine, pressing for expanded military and humanitarian assistance to Kiev.
The Baltic state of Estonia has, on a per capita basis, been the biggest contributor to both humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine in recent months. In gross numbers, Poland has been the largest contributor in the EU, and second only to the US within the NATO alliance.
The scale of their assistance to Ukraine can’t be overstated. Last month, Poland signed a US$5.8 billion defense deal with South Korea in order to refurbish its armory, which has been heavily depleted due to large-scale military assistance to neighboring Ukraine.
Aside from direct aid, the EU’s eastern flank has also shown greater willingness to make economic sacrifices amid the knock-on effects of new sweeping sanctions on Russia’s energy exports and financial sector.
Despite suffering from a 23% inflation rate, the highest on the continent, Estonians have largely backed a new wave of sanctions against the Kremlin.

Ukraine-Estonia-Flags-Protest.jpg

A protester holds Ukrainian and Estonian flags during a protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Image: Twitter / SOPA / LightRocket via Getty Images

In Poland, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has approved a raft of new legislation, including a moratorium on mortgage payments, in order to blunt the effects of Russia sanctions and Moscow’s response.
Having spent centuries within Moscow’s sphere of influence, EU’s eastern flank members have generally advocated for a far tougher stance, including the imposition of blanket visa bans against Russian citizens.
Last week, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics announced that Baltic countries, including Estonia and Lithuania, are set to almost completely shutter their borders, with few exceptions, for Russian citizens holding Schengen visas.

Following a meeting last week, eight Baltic and Nordic foreign ministers announced a joint agreement that “in principle” heavily restricts the entry of Russian citizens into the EU. National governments are yet to finalize details of the new agreement, which will likely face heavy scrutiny in Brussels.
“What we have seen in the last couple of weeks and months, is that the number of border crossings by Russian citizens holding Schengen visas have dramatically increased. This is becoming a public security issue, this is also an issue of a moral and political nature,” Latvia’s diplomatic chief said.
Despite gaining a greater voice within the EU, there are still lingering tensions within the bloc. A Polish member of the European Parliament recently complained that leaders in Paris and Berlin “still aren’t listening and continue to get it wrong. This means that their policy towards Russia was intentional and not based on any misunderstanding,”

Having resisted full-scale sanctions on Moscow’s energy exports, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has also opposed calls for a complete travel ban on Russian citizens.
For his part, Macron has insisted on the need for maintaining open communication lines with Moscow. “We must assume that we can talk to everyone, especially those with whom we disagree,” the French president said earlier this month, just a day after Russian giant Gazprom stopped gas supplies to its French counterpart, Engie.
Putin_and_Macron_meeting_with_a_large_table.jpeg

Macron and Putin have maintained lines of communication, though often at a distance. Image: Handout

With Russia sanctions driving up inflation across Europe and sparking massive protests in key countries, Kremlin-friendly populists have been gaining ground across the continent. This is most especially the case in Italy, which has been plunged into political turmoil following the collapse of the centrist coalition led by former prime minister Mario Draghi.
In recent weeks, the far-right coalition led by Meloni has gained a double-digit lead over their center-left rivals under the Democratic Party. Sensing her political moment, the willy populist known for her ideological dexterity, has vowed to stay the course on Russia sanctions.
Yet her top allies Salvini and Berlusconi are seen as broadly sympathetic to the Kremlin, no doubt influenced by the rising cost of living and a looming energy crisis in the EU’s third-largest economy. Salvini’s electoral base in northern Italy has been heavily hit by rising energy costs and declining business with Moscow.
For his part, former leader Berlusconi has had a long history of cozy relations with Putin. Referring to allegations of high-level contacts between Russian diplomats and right-wing Italian leaders in recent months, members of the former ruling coalition have gone so far as accusing Moscow of facilitating the downfall of the Draghi government.

“We want to know whether it was Putin who brought down the Draghi government. If that was the case it would be of the utmost gravity,” said Enrico Letta, leader of the center-left Democratic Party
But Salvini has dismissed such allegations as baseless accusations by a “desperate and divided left, with some foolish servant in some newsroom [who] passes their time to look for fascists, Russians and racists which don’t exist.”
A top member of Berlusconi’s Forza Italia has similarly dismissed accusations of pro-Kremlin sympathies in the party by insisting that “[a]ny change of position must be taken at the European and NATO level” and that anti-Russia “sanctions are inevitable and we must continue to impose them.”

It’s unclear whether the impending victory of a far-right coalition in Italy will dramatically alter the country’s foreign policy, especially on Ukraine.
What’s clear is that there are simmering tensions within the EU on how far they should go in supporting Ukraine militarily and diplomatically against Russia, which is leveraging its stranglehold on Europe’s energy markets to political and economic effect.
 

60% of France opposes Russia sanctions due to economic impact​

Wednesday, 14 September 2022 12:29 AM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 14 September 2022 12:29 AM ]

Link: https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/09/13/689164/Russia-sanctions-EU-economic-impact

[see vid at site link, above]

Ramin Mazaheri
Press TV, Paris


With record inflation already established and long-term recession looming, few could deny that Europe’s sanctions war on Russia has backfired economically, so far. A new poll from a top French TV news channel has found that the French have become extremely pessimistic about the conflict in Ukraine, and increasingly fed up with the price they have to pay for a country which is not even a part of the European Union or the eurozone.
The poll found that almost 60% want the sanctions on Russia to stop or be reduced if they have too big an impact on the average French person’s purchasing power.
A whopping 75% of France says the sanctions on Russia have not been effective. France is split almost 50-50 on the question of has military and financial aid to Ukraine been effective. Almost 85% of those polled think the war will drag on for years.
The poll goes against the stated positions of Brussels, Paris and France’s mainstream media moguls, but the economic difficulty of the French working class is extremely hard to suppress.
There were over 100 arrests in Paris last weekend at a protest of the economic-based Yellow Vest movement. Many wonder if the French will increasingly brave well-known police and judicial repression in order to protest an unequal economy which appears certain to only worsen.
After the coronavirus pause, the Yellow Vests have been marching nation-wide every Saturday since their “Season 2” began in October 2021. However, French media have essentially had a blackout on the group since about June 2019.
While Europe is warning that energy shortages are likely to produce a winter of frosty discontent, the new poll shows a majority of France had already grown weary of sanctions on Russia by the twilight of summer.
 
WHY Is Germany Committing Suicide?
The Same Reasons WHY the EU/UK is Being Deindustrialized!


DAVID CHU • SEPTEMBER 17, 2022

Link: https://www.unz.com/article/why-is-germany-committing-suicide/



Well that’s the real question, isn’t it? Why? The how and the who is just scenery for the public. Oswald, Ruby, Cuba, the Mafia. Keeps ’em guessing like some kind of parlor game, prevents ’em from asking the most important question, why? Why was Kennedy killed? Who benefited? Who has the power to cover it up? Who?
~ Mr. X in JFK movie
Why is Germany committing harakiri (or seppuku)?
Because the Americans ordered them to do so!
Recently, William F. Engdahl wrote a very interesting article titled, “Europe’s Energy Armageddon From Berlin and Brussels, Not Moscow” which was re-worked in Pepe Escobar’s “Germany’s Energy Suicide: An Autopsy”.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/57224.htm
https://www.unz.com/pescobar/germanys-energy-suicide-an-autopsy/
Both articles give a fascinating explanation of HOW Germany is committing suicide. Green Agenda 2030. The Great Reset. Etc.
I emailed Engdahl about the following statement that he wrote in his article and asked him, “What is the real reason for the complete deindustrialization of Germany? Besides the Green Energy or Great Reset bullshit.”:
It is not because politicians like Scholz or German Green Economy Minister Robert Habeck, nor EU Commission Green Energy Vice President Frans Timmermans are stupid or clueless. Corrupt and dishonest, maybe yes. They know exactly what they are doing. They are reading a script. It is all part of the EU plan to deindustrialize one of the most energy-efficient industrial concentrations on the planet. This is the UN Green Agenda 2030 otherwise known as Klaus Schwab’s Great Reset. [Bolded emphasis is mine.]
For whatever reasons, Engdahl didn’t reply to my email. But in my email to him, I basically answered my question when I asked the following:
Is it to emasculate Europe completely so as to make Europe completely dependent on the US for both energy and technology? The rest of the world is moving towards BRI and BRICS. The only block left to harvest aka rape and pillage for the Americans is Europe (plus Japan and South Korea).
That was September 5, 2022.
On September 16, 2022, RT (Russia Today) ran an article titled, “Elite US think tank dismisses EU plot report as ‘fake’” ( https://www.rt.com/news/562911-rand-corp-ukraine-plot/ ):
The story of an alleged US plan to drain EU resources to prop up its economy was reported on Tuesday by Nya Dagbladet, a Swedish news outlet, which describes itself as anti-globalist, humanist, pro-freedom, and independent. An English-language version was releasedlater in the week.
The newspaper claimed that it obtained a classified document signed by the RAND Corporation, titled ‘Weakening Germany, strengthening the US’. The paper, which was allegedly produced in January, outlined a scenario for how the US could help its struggling economy by draining resources from its European allies.
The purported plot involved goading Russia into attacking Ukraine, which would force the EU to impose sanctions on Russia and decouple their economies from Russian energy.
Well, today (September 17, 2022) I contacted the two Swedish authors of Nya Dagbladet and asked them to provide me with the RAND document. Markus Andersson, one of the authors and chief editor, quickly replied and voila here is the “fake” RAND document:
https://nyadagbladet.se/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/rand-corporation-ukraina-energikris.pdf
You better save a copy of this PDF on your hard drive and pass it on to all your friends, especially those sheeple living in Germany, before the RAND people scream bloody murder and disappear this very important “fake” document!
Very soon now, the RAND people will call it a “forgery”.
The RAND report is titled, “Executive Summary: Weakening Germany, strengthening the U.S.”
It is dated January 25, 2022 and is labelled “Confidential”. The distribution list include WHCS (White House Chief of Staff), ANSA (Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs), Dept. of State, CIA (Central Intelligence Agency), NSA (National Security Agency), and the DNC (Democratic National Committee).
Shall we take a little peek into this “fake” document?
The present state of the U.S. economy does not suggest that it can function without financial and material support from external sources [very definition of a parasitic empire!]. The quantitative easing policy, which the Fed has resorted to regularly in recent years,s as well as uncontrolled issue of cash during the 2020 and 2021 Covid lockdowns, have led to a sharp increase in the external debt and an increase in the dollar supply [the very definition of high inflation rates].
The continuing deterioration of the economic situation is highly likely to lead to a loss in the position of the Democratic Party in Congress and the Senate in the forthcoming elections to be held in November 2022. The impeachment of the President cannot be ruled out under these circumstances, which must be avoided at all costs. [Bolded emphasis is mine.]
There is an urgent need for resources to flow into the national economy, especially the banking system. Only European countries bound by the EU and NATO commitments will be able to provide them without significant military and political costs for us. [The USA has ran out of third-world and developing nations to rape and pillage.]
The major obstacle to it is growing independence of Germany. Although it still is a country with limited sovereignty, for decades it has been consistently moving toward lifting these limitations and becoming a fully independent state. This movement is slow and cautious, but steady. Extrapolation shows that the ultimate goal can be reached only in several decades. However if social and economic problems in the United States escalate, the pace could accelerate significantly. . . .
Vulnerabilities in German and EU Economy
An increase in the flow of resources from Europe to U.S. can be expected if Germany begins to experience a controlled economic crisis [bolded emphasis is mine]. The pace of economic development in the EU depends almost without alternative on the state of the German economy. It is Germany that bears the brunt of the expenditure directed towards the poorer EU members.
The current German economic model is based on two pillars. These are unlimited access to cheap Russian energy resources and to cheap French electric power, thanks to the operation of nuclear power plants. The importance of the first factor is considerably higher. Halting Russian supplies can well create a systemic crisis that would be devastating for the German economy and, indirectly, for the entire European Union. . . . [Bolded emphasis is mine.]
A Controlled Crisis
Due to coalition constraints, the German leadership is not in full control of the situation in the country. Thanks to our precise actions, it has been possible to block the commissioning of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, despite the opposition of lobbyists from the steel and chemical industries. However, the dramatic deterioration of the living standards may encourage the leadership to reconsider its policy and return to the idea of European sovereignty and strategic autonomy.
The only feasible way to guarantee Germany’s rejection of Russian energy supplies is to involve both sides in the military conflict in Ukraine. Our further actions in this country will inevitably lead to a military response from Russia. Russians will obviously not be able to leave unanswered the massive Ukrainian army pressure on the unrecognized Donbas republics. That would make possible to declare Russia an aggressor and apply to it the entire package of sanctions prepared beforehand. . . .[Bolded emphasis is mine.]
The RAND Executive Summary then goes on to detail the “Expected Consequences” with projections of financial and economic loses for Germany.
The rest as they say is . . . (almost) Mission Accomplished!
P.S. Adolf must be rolling in his Argentina grave now that Sergeant “I Know Nothing!” Scholz is in full command of the Fatherland . . . .
 

Germany’s Energy Crisis: Berlin Police Prepare For Mass Rioting, Looting in Wake of Blackouts​

Link: https://evol.news/news/germanys-ene...n-wake-of-blackouts/?utm_source=newsletter-98

Die Berliner Zeitung: Berlin “Police want to be prepared for the state of emergency.”

As Germany copes with a massive energy crisis, the police in the state of Berlin are preparing for large-scale looting and rioting in the wake of possible blackouts.
The Berlin Police have “secretly” drafted an “anti-chaos paper” outlining the measures needs to contain widespread public unrest and riots this winter, German newspaper Die Berliner Zeitung reported Friday.
The Berlin “police want to be prepared for the state of emergency,” the newspaper wrote citing a leaked internal document. According to the daily, the authorities were gearing up for “looting, unrest, and attacks on the critical infrastructure” if the electricity supply collapses.

The largest-selling German newspaper Bild also reported the contents of the leaked police document, describing it as “confidential.”
 

Leftist German Chancellor Seeks Energy Deals with Islamist Gulf to Replace Russia​

Link: https://www.breitbart.com/europe/20...y-deals-with-islamist-gulf-to-replace-russia/


14
German
Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance via Getty Images
BREITBART LONDON24 Sep 202240

BERLIN (AP) – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is travelling to the Middle East on Saturday for a two-day, three-country visit aimed at striking new energy deals and forging fresh alliances amid the economic and geopolitical turmoil resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The German government has scrambled to wean Europe’s biggest economy off Russian oil, coal, and gas since coming to office last December.
While imports from Russia have declined sharply since then, there are fears that Germany, like other European countries, could face an energy shortage in the coming months
Bridging the gap in natural gas supplies is a particular concern and one of the reasons Scholz is heading to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar together with a high-level business delegation, senior officials said.
The officials, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity ahead of the trip, said Scholz will also address human rights issues when he meets Saturday with Saudi Arabia’s powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah.

U.S. President Joe Biden was criticized in July for meeting with the Saudi crown prince, despite allegations that he was involved in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
“Of course this trip is being closely watched and we’re going to encounter difficult partners there,” one German official said. “And yet we can’t refuse to have such meetings and such cooperation.”
“In a world with 193 countries and big differences, it’s not just the German chancellor but many other leaders too who are seeking out talks at the moment and trying to forge new alliances and strengthen old ties,” he said. He was not authorized to be quoted by name on the trip.
From Saudi Arabia the German leader flies to Abu Dhabi, where he will meet with President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates and sign an energy accord. Talks there will also address the country’s hosting of next year’s U.N. climate talks.
The final stop is Doha, where Scholz will meet Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, to discuss bilateral relations, regional issues such as tensions with Iran and the Gulf nation’s upcoming hosting of the soccer World Cup.
German officials said all energy agreements will take into account the country’s plans to become carbon neutral by 2045, requiring a shift from natural gas to hydrogen produced with renewable energy in the coming decades. Saudi Arabia, which has vast regions suitable for cheap solar power generation, is seen as a particularly suitable supplier of hydrogen, they said.
 

China Is Reselling U.S. LNG To Europe For Big Profits​

Link: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-...selling-US-LNG-To-Europe-For-Big-Profits.html

By Alex Kimani - Oct 03, 2022, 12:30 PM CDT

Chinese companies that have signed long-term contracts to buy U.S. liquefied natural gas have been selling their excess inventories to Europe and reaping big profits from the sales thanks to weak demand in China, the Wall Street Journal reports.

WSJ reports that just 19 LNG vessels from the U.S. docked in China in the first eight months of the year, a far cry from 133 recorded for last year’s comparable period. China’s key buyers are located in Europe, Japan and South Korea.

China has imported nearly 30% more gas from Russia so far this year, typically at a steep discount, shipping data shows. Still, Chinese sales to Europe are not nearly enough to help the continent avoid potential shortages this winter with Europe depending more heavily on the U.S.

Europe has managed to fill its gas stores ahead of schedule. Europe’s natural gas prices have plunged sharply on news that Germany’s gas stockpiles are running ahead of schedule. Benchmark Dutch front-month futures crashed 21% in a single day, reversing the previous week’s 40% jump after Germany’s Economy Minister Robert Habeck revealed that the country’s gas stores are filling up fast and are on target to meet the October objective of 85% full.

Related: Oil Prices Jump 5% As Bullish Catalysts Mount
According to a Reuters gas counter, 88.4% of EU gas storage is already filled.
The plunge has brought some relief after a furious rally, though futures are still trading almost six times higher than a year ago. Europe is on the brink of a recession, with inflation running at the highest in decades in several countries. European Governments have collectively set aside some 280 billion euros ($278 billion) in relief packages.
Goldman Sachs has told Barrons that Europe has managed to solve its gas crisis ahead of winter and that prices could drop by half in the next six months.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

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