LoL! Whole world just begs for Russian resources. Europe just got heart attack when gazprom disconnected Bulgaria and Poland yesterday and in a hurry started open ruble accounts
Nothing more than wholesale looters... Putin's vile plot to raid Ukraine food supplies to fill empty shelves in Russia revealed A bumbling Russian politician appears to have spilled the beans on Vladimir Putin's horrifying plan to address food shortages in his own nation - steal crops from occupied Ukraine https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/putins-vile-plot-raid-ukraine-26828083 A Russian politician has accidentally revealed that Vladimir Putin plans to seize food in parts of occupied Ukraine to fill empty shelves in his own nation. Western sanctions imposed since the invasion began in February have hit Russia hard, with crippling food shortages reported across the country. Putin's plan to solve his people's hunger has drawn comparison to the Holodomor, a famine that killed millions of Ukrainians in the 1930s. The horrifying mass starvation drove many to cannibalism, and many historians blame Joseph Stalin for deliberately causing the tragedy through a series of genocidal policies. Vladislav Zyryanov, chair of the agriculture committee in the Krasnoyarsk regional assembly in Siberia, appeared to give the strategy away in a statement which said the Kremlin wants "to increase the volume of supplies for domestic Russian consumers by moving food from other southern [Ukrainian] regions taken under its control". The Putin ally called the move "economically justified, given the withdrawal of many suppliers of seeds and fertilisers from the Russian market" and suggested other parts of Russia could "successfully implement" similar policies of their own. The Ukraine Agri Council, which represents Ukrainian farmers, said on Wednesday Russian occupiers had started seizing grain from the Zaporizhzhia region. Zyryanov’s statement was taken down from the Krasnoyarsk assembly’s website on Wednesday. It's the first time a Russian official has acknowledged that Western sanctions are having an impact on the supply chain and economy. On Wednesday Putin himself insisted the sanctions had failed, saying the rouble, banking system, transport sector and economy as a whole are still going strong. Russia's economy ministry expects gross domestic product to shrink by 8.8% in 2022 in its base case scenario, or by 12.4% under a more conservative scenario, a document seen by Reuters showed on Wednesday, suggesting that sanctions pressure is taking its toll. In March shoppers were spotted panic buying at Moscow supermarkets, with some filmed fighting over grocery staples such as sugar. "There were empty shelves - no salt, no sugar, no pasta, no buckwheat, and only expensive rice," a local woman named Anna told Podyom media. "People suddenly saw a cart with sugar and ran towards it. "They attacked this cart, pushing each other away aggressively. "They were grabbing as much as possible for themselves, not leaving sugar for the others. "I wanted to share the horror of it. We must stay human." The United Nations and the European Union have both accused Russia of bombing Ukrainian food stocks and blocking deliveries of humanitarian supplies into the country, effectively using mass hunger as a weapon of war.
There are some that think that there could be a war settlement some day, then sanctions will be lifted and lots of things will revert to "normal." Nope. Not in Russia's case. They seized up to 10 billion- or so the claims go- of foreign carrier aircraft and the insurers will probably have to pay out. I don't think the "Act of War" clauses will save them. That is going to leave a mark that will not go away for a generation along with Russia's other threats to nationalize foreign companies. Sanctions or no sanctions. War or no war. I don't see any insured carrier going in there for a long time to come. Cannot put that genie back in the bottle just by settling the war. Has a ripple effect over to other shaky emerging countries too. Russia’s Plane Grab Will See Higher Leasing Rates For Emerging Markets BY JOANNA BAILEYPUBLISHED 21 HOURS AGO The consequence of the $10 billion plane theft will fall to the airlines who can least afford it. https://simpleflying.com/emerging-markets-plane-leasing-costs-rise/
New gas pipeline boosts Europe's bid to ease Russian supply https://news.yahoo.com/gas-pipeline-boosts-europes-bid-063706779.html 1 / 10 Energy Europe Pipelines Heavy machines install a pipeline near Komotini town, northern Greece, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020. Crossing a remote border area of Greece and Bulgaria, a new pipeline nearing completion will help countries in the region dependent on Russian imports get greater access to the global natural gas market. The pipeline will ensure that large volumes of gas will flow between the two countries in both directions. (AVAX via AP) ASSOCIATED PRESS DEREK GATOPOULOS Fri, April 29, 2022, 2:37 AM·4 min read ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Mountainous and remote, the Greek-Bulgaria border once formed the southern corner of the Iron Curtain. Today, it’s where the European Union is redrawing the region’s energy map to ease its heavy reliance on Russian natural gas. A new pipeline — built during the COVID-19 pandemic, tested and due to start commercial operation in June — would ensure that large volumes of gas flow between the two countries in both directions to generate electricity, fuel industry and heat homes. The energy link takes on greater importance following Moscow’s decision this week to cut off natural gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria over a demand for payments in rubles stemming from Western sanctions over the war of Ukraine. The 180-kilometer (110-mile) pipeline project is the first of several planned gas interconnectors that would give eastern European Union members and countries hoping to join the 27-nation bloc access to the global gas market. In the short term, it’s Bulgaria’s backup. The new pipeline connection, called the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria, will give the country access to ports in neighboring Greece that are importing liquefied natural gas, or LNG, and also will bring gas from Azerbaijan through a new pipeline system that ends in Italy. It's one of many efforts as EU members scramble to edit their energy mixes, with some reverting back to emissions-heavy coal while also planning expanded output from renewables. Germany, the world’s biggest buyer of Russian energy, is looking to build LNG import terminals that would take years. Italy, another top Russian gas importer, has reached deals with Algeria, Azerbaijan, Angola and Congo for gas supplies. The European Union wants to reduce its dependence on Russian oil and gas by two-thirds this year and to eliminate it completely over five years through alternative sources, the use of wind and solar power, and conservation. Russia's invasion of Ukraine is likely to accelerate changes in the EU’s long-term strategy as the bloc adapts to energy that is more expensive but also more integrated among member nations, said Simone Tagliapietra, an energy expert at the Brussels-based think tank Bruegel. “It’s a new world,” he said. “And in this new world, it’s clear that Russia doesn’t want to be part of an international order as we think of it.” Tagliapietra added: “The strategy — particularly by Germany — over the last 50 years was always one of engaging with Russia on energy. ... But given what we are seeing in Ukraine and given Russia’s view of international relations, it’s not the kind of country with which we would like to do business.” EU policymakers argue that while Eastern European members are among the most dependent on Russian gas, the size of their markets makes the problem manageable. Bulgaria imported 90% of its gas from Russia but only consumes 3 billion cubic meters annually — 30 times less than lead consumer Germany, according to 2020 data from EU statistics agency Eurostat. The Greece-Bulgaria pipeline will complement the existing European network, much of which dates to the Soviet era, when Moscow sought badly needed funds for its faltering economy and Western suppliers to help build its pipelines. The link will run between the northeastern Greek city of Komotini and Stara Zagora, in central Bulgaria, and will give Bulgaria and neighbors with new grid connections access to the expanding global gas market. That includes a connection with the newly built Trans Adriatic Pipeline, which carries gas from Azerbaijan, and suppliers of liquefied natural gas that arrives by ship, likely to include Qatar, Algeria and the United States. As many as eight additional interconnectors could be built in Eastern Europe, reaching as far as Ukraine and Austria. The 240 million-euro ($250 million) pipeline will carry 3 billion cubic meters of gas per year, with an option to be expanded to 5 billion. It received funding from Bulgaria, Greece and the EU, and has strong political support from Brussels and the United States. On the ground, the project faced multiple holdups because of supply chain snags during the COVID-19 pandemic. Receiving specialized parts and moving personnel after construction got underway in early 2020 soon became increasingly difficult, said Antonis Mitzalis, executive director of Greek contractor AVAX, which oversaw the project. Construction of the pipeline finished in early April, he said, while work and testing at two metering stations and software installation are in the final stages. “We had a sequence in mind. But the fact that some materials did not arrive made us rework that sequence, sometimes with a cost effect,” Mitzalis said. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis missed a tour of the site last month after contracting COVID-19. He spoke Wednesday with his Bulgarian counterpart, Kiril Petkov, to provide assurances of Greek support. “Bulgaria and Greece will continue to work together for energy security and diversification — of strategic importance for both countries and the region,” Petkov later tweeted. “We both are confident for the successful completion of the IGB on time.” ___
Russia’s gas blackmail: Putin is bringing a knife to a gun fight By weaponising gas exports, Putin is digging the grave of Russia’s economy. https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/...mail-putin-is-bringing-a-knife-to-a-gun-fight On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin escalated the geo-economic war between his country and the West by suspending gas deliveries to Poland and Bulgaria, citing the two countries’ refusal to pay in Russian roubles. The move, decried by the West as “blackmail”, yet again demonstrated Putin’s belief that Russia’s status as a commodities exporter will enable it to withstand and counter the crippling sanctions imposed on its economy since its invasion of Ukraine. In reality, however, Putin’s move is akin to brining a knife to a gunfight. The decision to suspend gas deliveries to two European nations will not only fail to strengthen the Russian economy, but it will significantly increase the Kremlin’s long-term economic losses. But to understand why Putin’s move will not deliver the desired outcome, we first need to look at his motivations for making it. Sanctions have cut Russia off from foreign exchange reserves worth hundreds of billions of dollars, Russian imports are cratering amid restrictions on dual use and computer technologies, and Western firms are pulling out from Russia or “self-sanctioning” by refusing to sell goods there. Putin, however, still appears to be under the impression that he can win the economic war being waged over his invasion of Ukraine. On the surface, it seems like there is some reason for the confidence the Russian state displays: the rouble has more than recovered its value from before sanctions were introduced, hitting a two-year high against the Euro on April 27, and Russia is once again growing its foreign currency holdings on the back of sky-high hydrocarbon prices. All this, of course, belies the real state of the Russian economy. First of all, the interruptions to supply chains caused by sanctions are crippling Russia’s production capacities. In March, for example, there was a whopping 72 percent drop in passenger car production in the country. The Kremlin is also all but certain to formally default on its foreign debts in the coming days, which will make financing a future rebuilding of the economy extremely difficult. Moreover, Russian wealth abroad is increasingly under threat and the much celebrated exchange rate recovery has only been achieved thanks to extreme capital controls. The Central Bank of Russia and Putin’s advisers in the finance and economy ministries know that the rouble sustaining its value is overwhelmingly dependent on hydrocarbon prices and continued Russian state control over trading. They are also wary of how much rouble liquidity has already decreased in light of the existing sanctions on Russia’s banking system. As Putin’s brutal war on Ukraine continues, sanctions are expected to expand. Washington has warned that it may still cut off rouble convertibility entirely and there is no significant Western demand for roubles. This is precisely why Putin has ordered European gas firms to pay for the natural gas they buy from Russia in roubles. Payments for gas in the local currency would leave the window open for rouble convertibility – something the Kremlin desperately needs given oil prices are unlikely to remain so elevated permanently. At the moment, the global financial system runs on the US dollar, and the Kremlin is aware of this. But as Russia’s Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev said in an April 26 interview with state media, Russia is now working to create a “dual loop monetary and financial system” in which the rouble would be backed by both gold and commodities “to put the rouble exchange rate in line with real purchasing power parity”. Russia forcing Europe to pay for gas in roubles is just one part of this major plan. But there is little reason to believe this plan with work – with or without rouble payments for gas from Europe. The Soviet Union already tried to do this – including a brief “gold rouble” period in the early 1920s – and, despite all their ideological fervour, they could not make it work. The attempt is much less likely to succeed in Putin’s ideologically bereft state. Putin is weaponising his country’s gas supplies, and foregoing the profits that could be earned by selling at spot to Poland and Bulgaria – which have refused to renew contracts – to demonstrate the seriousness of his rouble demand. Some European gas companies have already capitulated – four European gas companies have reportedly already made payments in roubles and others are preparing to do so, including Italy’s ENI, despite European Union warnings. This could be seen as a Russian victory. But even if EU unity does collapse over the issue and gas payments ensure that the rouble’s convertibility remains in place for now, Putin is overplaying his hand. Moscow had been receiving accolades for acting less overtly political in European supply and pricing markets before its invasion of Ukraine. It was seeing beneficial EU reforms, arbitration court rulings and market liberalisation. The Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea gas pipeline project, designed to double the flow of Russian gas direct to Germany, was under way. However, Russia’s aggression in Ukraine changed all this and Berlin cancelled the pipeline project in response to Russia’s recognition of its proxies in Donetsk and Luhansk on the eve of the invasion. Of course, Europe will remain dependent on Russian gas for at least one to two years. But Putin’s actions have already spurred a search for alternatives – including the Baltic Pipeline linking Norway and Poland that is expected to be competed later this year. All this will only accelerate in light of his move to suspend gas deliveries to Poland and Bulgaria, which permanently put to rest the idea that Russia will not weaponise its gas exports. The EU could increase LNG imports from sources other than Russia by nearly 70 billion cubic metres this year – reaching more than 40 percent of what it received from Russia. Maximising production at the Dutch Groningen gas fields and working with Azerbaijan and Algeria (as well as Turkey and Morocco, through which key pipelines run) could further help address the shortfall. Before the Ukraine war, Europe had little motivation to swiftly reduce its dependence on Russian gas. But Putin’s own actions – first the illegal invasion of Ukraine and then the overt weaponisation of gas exports – created the political will to address the issue. Putin is teaching Europeans that interdependence between Russia and the West has failed as a strategy. But his economy remains a one-trick pony, dependent on commodities and stuck responding to sanctions rather than striking its own serious blows. A lesson for Putin can be found in what is known as “Healey’s Law” (named after Denis Healey, the British chancellor who himself experienced the difficulty of resetting a country’s finances when he negotiated an IMF Bailout in 1976): “Follow the rule of holes; if you are in one, stop digging.” As for Europe, Healey’s law contains a corollary that applies: “When your opponent is in a hole, why would you want to take away his shovel?” Putin may have scored a short-term victory, but he is digging the grave of Russia’s economy.
Perhaps the simplest explanation is that all of the nations sanctioning Russia are nations who have printed so much money and altered/devalued their financial systems enough to cause a very sudden collapse of their currency. No countries back their currency with gold any more. China is also in some trouble with credit, but they have gold. Russia has announced they will back their ruble with gold, but someone is really freaking out, likely the BIS and WMF. Every nation that has said they would back their currency with gold has their leader killed by unknown persons for decades. Gold and other natural resources will become the value backing for the new money that Russia and China are moving to, in cooperation with other nations that need a different future to survive. And oil, gas, material, food...... The US/UK/EU is not prepared and in denial of this reality. They are risking everything on Russia losing. They must tell us that we are winning. When the new depression hits the world, some will think they are rich. Follow the money. https://www.moonofalabama.org/2022/...0b#comment-6a00d8341c640e53ef0282e152f5ef200b
Putin clearly still using duct tape, bondo, and mirrors to try to avoid default on bond payments. This article seems to say in some places that he might squeak by this time, in other places sounds iffy. We don't know what is actually being accepted and of course, since they are lying pigs, we don't really know what payment has been made either. We will know soon enough. The Russians say they made payments in dollars so they should squeak by unless they are liars, which of course they are. They say the check is in the mail and in dollars, but at the same time talk about taking legal action if they default. So why would they need to even get into the default threatening if everything is groovy. And one does exactly get the impression that he will be in a better position for the next payment. All that cheerleading and smirking over the ruble rising is fine and dandy, except out in the real world the bondholders do not want to be paid in funny money like rubles and food stamps. Maybe one of the paid Russian trolls will put up a GoFundMe page for Vlad. Or maybe Vlad can get a loan from BLM. Have to think outside the box a little bit. I am pretty sure he is already talking to Rosland Capital. Russia aims to avert historic debt default with last-ditch dollar bond payments https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/29/rus...ayments-to-try-to-avert-historic-default.html
Heroic ‘Ghost of Kyiv’ a myth, Ukraine admits By Emma Bubola May 2, 2022 He shot down numerous Russian planes, survived enemy attacks and became a symbol of Ukraine’s surprisingly effective air defences, earning a bold wartime moniker: The Ghost of Kyiv. He is also, it turns out, a myth........ https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe...iv-a-myth-ukraine-admits-20220502-p5ahmx.html