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Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoschenko (l.) and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin speak after the signing ceremony
Although Ukraine and Russia apparently reached a deal to end the natural-gas
impasse Sunday, impatient leaders across Europe say they still haven’t been told
precisely when the pipeline flows will be restored.
Previous agreements to end the two week-long shutoff have fallen apart. This
might explain why every twist and turn of the latest iteration has been followed so
closely, with news agencies issuing dispatches Monday to confirm that pens had
actually touched contract paper.
The low physical pressure in the pipelines stands in contrast to the growing push
for both Russia and Ukraine to put an end to the problem. Alexander Gudyma, gas
adviser to Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoschenko, explained to the Russian
business newspaper Vedomosti that the deal was reached by trying “not to
humiliate Russia or offend Ukraine.”
Assuming gas begins to flow again, attention will return to the political fallout. Will
Europe follow through on its promises to diversify its energy sources to avoid
another hijacking of the thermostat? Italy, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Britain are now
pushing forward with plans to restart old nuclear reactors or build new ones,
according to a story in last week’s Monitor.
Italy’s minister for economic development, Claudio Scajola, said last week, “We
must go back to nuclear power if we want to become less dependent on others’
moods.”
Mr. Scajola didn’t name names, but much of the blame for the crisis has been
placed on the shoulders of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who is often
described as both a past spymaster (from his time in the KGB), and a modern day
puppetmaster, for his ability to hand-pick his successor, Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev. But what about Mr. Putin’s Ukrainian counterpart?
According to a 2007 story from the Monitor’s Fred Weir, Ms. Tymoschenko’s actual
nickname is “Gas Princess,” which she earned from her days making a fortune as
an energy trader in the 1990s. Tymoschenko, according to the story, entered
politics in the late 1990s and cast herself as a staunch liberal reformer, corruption
fighter, and Ukrainian patriot.
“Tymoschenko constantly demands full and total power,” says Viktor Nebozhenko,
director of Ukrainian Barometer, an independent Kiev think tank, and a former
member of Tymoshenko’s campaign team. “She has a high level of personal
charisma, but she also tends to be a demagogue. She can’t make compromises,
she can’t manage a partnership. Her personality is too strong.”
Tymoschenko might be more tycoon than Star Wars heroine. Russia, meanwhile,
could have a tough time shedding its image as the Evil Empire in this whole
dispute, according to the Russian newspaper, Moskovsky Komsomolets, which
states that Russia’s role in the dispute has been pre-ordained:
“No matter what turn the Russia-Ukraine gas conflict takes, the West will always
act in accordance with its friend-foe system, where Russia will always be a foe. To
the West, Ukraine is a country of the ‘victorious orange revolution,’ while Russia is
‘the cradle of Putin’s authoritarianism.’ Like almost all EU countries, Ukraine is an
energy consumer, while Russia is a member of the rival “suppliers club.”
how?
banks have to cancel the current interest remainder right
now! this sacrifice will be amply rewarded through the
enormous economic activity that will be unleashed, with its
consequent credit demand, and growing and secure profits
for banks."