Russia stepped up its gas tussle with Belarus on Wednesday, saying it had more than halved supplies to its neighbor, but said that gas was flowing smoothly to Europe despite Minsk’s threats to shut down transit pipelines.
On Tuesday, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko ordered the transit of Russian gas to Europe to be cut in a debt spat with Russia’s gas export monopoly Gazprom, declaring the two nations were facing a fully fledged “gas war.”
“I have two news for you — one good and one bad. Let’s start with a good news — the transit of Russian gas through Belarus is taking place at full volume and Russian gas customers are having no problems with deliveries,” Gazprom’s head Alexei Miller told state television.
“The bad news is that the Belarusian side is not taking any steps to pay the debts for Russian gas supplies and from 10am on June 23, 2010, we are introducing a limit on Russian gas supplies to Belarus by 60 percent,” Miller told reporters.
ACCUSATION
Gazprom accuses Minsk of having amassed a debt of US$192 million for gas deliveries since January. Belarus, for its part, said Gazprom owed it US$260 million for gas transit, but Gazprom said Minsk had blocked payments.
Russia, the world’s largest energy exporter, supplies Europe with 25 percent of gas needs, with four-fifths of that flowing via Ukraine and one-fifth via Belarus.
Ukraine has already promised to ship more Russian gas to Europe to help Moscow plug the potential gap in supplies via Belarus, while analysts have said the impact on consumers should not be big given low gas consumption in Europe at the moment.
SOVIET ECONOMICS
The close ties between Russia and Belarus have been increasingly strained as Lukashenko has sought to use Russia’s eagerness to maintain an ally on its Western flank to persuade Moscow to leave Soviet-style economic subsidies in place.
Relations have also soured since they failed to agree on unified customs rules and Belarus gave refuge to ousted Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek Bakiyev, despite Moscow’s support for the new Kyrgyz leadership.
LOWEST PRICE
Belarus pays the lowest price among Russian gas customers and has bridled at recent increases, saying it should pay less for oil and gas if Russia is serious about close relations.
Previous pricing disputes with Minsk led to oil supply cuts, with Poland and Germany being affected most as they receive large volumes of crude and gas from Russia via Belarus.
A similar standoff with Kiev halted the much larger Russian gas supplies across Ukraine for almost two weeks in January last year, leaving many Europeans without fuel during a cold snap.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College