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Anders Åslund Profile picture
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8 Mar, 5 tweets, 2 min read
Nord Stream 2: Why does Russia insist on building this gas pipeline from St. Petersburg to Germany through the Baltic Sea?
1. To cut out Ukraine so that Russia can freely bomb it (geopolitics)
2. Corruption: to pay off Putin's friends Timchenko, Rotenbergs & Schröder.
= Awful!
2. There is no demand for more Russian gas from Europe. Russian gas exports to the EU27 peaked at 168 billion cubic meters in 2019. It might reach 135 bcm this year & then fall, as Europe is the champion of green energy & energy savings.
3. Russia has a massive overcapacity of gas pipelines to Europe. The expected exports this year is 135 bcm. The well-functioning Ukrainian system can transit 160 bcm, the Polish-Belarusian 33 bcm, Nord Stream 1: 55 bcm & Turk Stream 31.5 bcm, more than 100% overcapacity.
4. It is impermissible that Germany allows the morally-conflicted #Schröder dictate its Russia policy. President #Steinmeier & former foreign minister #Gabriel were his assistants. #Germany needs to become serious (rather than corrupt) in its #Russia policy.
5. The US sanctions on NS2 are a kind attempt by the US to clean up the SPD/Schröder/Warnig corruption that the German government has failed to stop as the US does in so many other countries with weak laws or rule of law. Kleptocracy has to be combat & defeated.

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More from @anders_aslund

Anders Åslund Profile picture
4 Mar
@JoeBiden has already put out an Interim National Security Strategic Guidance. It is a nice well-structured read. While brief, it is substantial & consistent with prior policy statements. The key phrases are democracy and building back better.
whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/…
2. The world is presented as receding democracies in need of repair in a "growing rivalry with China, Russia, and other authoritarian states." China (named 15 times) "has rapidly become more assertive," while Russia ( 5 times) plays "a disruptive role on the world stage.
3. Iran, North Korea and terrorists in the Middle East are mentioned, they are downplayed. Many countries are mentioned, but none in Eastern Europe - not a word about Ukraine, Belarus, etc. Europe is discussed as one entity & the UK is just about mentioned as an ally.
Read 8 tweets
Anders Åslund Profile picture
27 Feb
A few words about my long-time late friend Boris Nemtsov on the 6th anniversary of the Kremlin murder of him. More than any Russian before him, he was a truly Western politician. He listened to all & always ready to discuss. He spoke so that people understood.
Boris was a true liberal & democrat. His great aspiration was that Russia should become a member of the European Union & he often mentioned a Russian opinion poll in the 1990s in which one-third of Russians expressed their desire that Russia would become a member of the EU.
Few were as charming as humoristic as Boris Nemtsov. He could charm and entertain any audience & he loved life & being among people. His courage was unlimited, but not foolish. He acted courageously to achieve political effect, and he did.
Read 4 tweets
Anders Åslund Profile picture
24 Feb
Putin talking to FSB (the murder agency):
"I would like to thank all of you for doing your jobs professionally and precisely, and for your readiness to achieve all your goals in non-standard conditions without reference to current circumstances." Really?
en.kremlin.ru/events/preside…
Putin gives air to his paranoia:
"we also have to deal with the so-called containment policy towards Russia. Actually, this is something we have been well aware of for a long time."
"This is not competition as a natural part of international relations, but a consistent and highly aggressive policy aimed at disrupting our development, at slowing it down and creating problems along our external perimeter and contour, provoking internal instability..."
Read 6 tweets
Anders Åslund Profile picture
11 Feb
Few things are more obvious than the issue of the current impeachment trial:
1. It was all instigated by Trump.
2. Trump's problem is that he does not (still) recognize democratic election outcomes (standard for budding authoritarians).
3. Trump was supported by antidemocratic media (FoxNews, Newsmax, AON & RT).
4. Most elected republicans are dead frightened by Trump, so they succumb to authoritarianism.
5. The next question is how many republican congressmen have more morals than fear of Trump.
6. Does the highly politicized US law enforcement possess sufficient integrity to prosecute the many crimes of the Trump family?
Read 4 tweets
Anders Åslund Profile picture
7 Feb
The EU needs to take urgent actions to compensate for @JosepBorrellF's debacle in Moscow. Here are a few ideas:
1. Swiftly sanction the 8 top Kremlin men Navalny has singled out!
2. Prohibit the completion of Nord Stream 2 once & for all!
3. Prohibit golden passports to Kremlin insiders (Cyprus, Malta & Bulgaria in particular)!
4. Sanction Putin's cronies Gennady Timchenko & Boris Rotenberg (naturalized Finnish citizens) & deprive them of Finnish citizenship.
5. Tighten the implementation of the 5th EU Anti-Money-Laundering directive of June 2018 requiring public registries in all EU countries of ultimate beneficiary owners & go after Putin's cronies!
6. Deprive Arkady Rotenberg of his 1 bn euro of prime real estate in Germany.
Read 5 tweets
Anders Åslund Profile picture
31 Jan
Plausible assessment of the new Russia by Leonid Gozman:
1. Navalny became the only oppositional alternative to Putin.
2. as long as Russia is ruled by Putin, he will not be released from prison. His release would be perceived as a victory for the protest
idu.org/a-new-era-in-r…
3. Authorities have ultimately decided on a course to intensify repression.
4. Authorities realize that, even with an extremely high level of manipulation of elections and falsification of their results, they can no longer provide themselves the necessary level of control
5. In international politics, an increase in isolation and hostility towards the West is inevitable.
6. There is no confrontation and split within civilians in the country; opposition-minded citizens do not oppose other citizens & Putin’s voters are passive
Read 4 tweets

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