1. Escaping Gazprom's Embrace
- Author:
- Borut Grgic and Alexandros Petersen
- Publication Date:
- 03-2008
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- The Journal of International Security Affairs
- Institution:
- Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs
- Abstract:
- In the first month of 2008, Russia's state-controlled natural gas mono-poly, Gazprom, ticked off two more European countries that will rely almost entirely on Moscow for their everyday energy needs. On Janu¬ary 18th, Russian President Vladimir Putin, accompanied by his anointed successor, Gazprom chairman Dmitri Medvedev, pressured the govern¬ment in Sofia into signing an energy deal with Russia and providing its backing for the construction of the South Stream gas pipeline from Russia to Bulgaria, and further into Europe, undercutting EU- and U.S.-backed plans for a pipeline from Turkey. Then, a week later, Serbian President Boris Tadic, accompanied by his prime minister, visited Moscow and signed on the dotted line, allowing Gazprom to acquire a 51 percent stake in Serbia's national oil company (NIS). The ambitious move not only strengthened energy links between the two Slavic nations, but bolstered ties between the two most vocal opponents of independence for Kosovo.
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, Europe, Kosovo, Moscow, Serbia, and Bulgaria