Mark my words: this is the end of western hegemony.
Especially since brics is taking off, they are launching their own currency and tons of countries want to join it.
Bojo was a complete bozo to amp up the war.
Elect a clown, expect a circus
There are sanctions preventing Nord Stream 2 pipeline to be used. Sanctions also obstruct maintenance and normal operation of Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which had caused the reduction.
One could argue that Russia is not being too consumer-oriented and is overly pedantic in legal maters, but this is hardly surprising at the current level of relations.
Come on now...
Russia can't defeat Ukraine with Nato weapons. Once the gloves are of they can either take the deal with the international coalition now and get all the money for no work, or become even more of a joke and take the deal later anyway.
No nukes need fly, because we are not an existential threat and Russia cannot do much in a conventional war.
Don't expect that this will end up being as nice and comfy as bombing other 3rd world countries, which is the only military expertise that NATO had had for decades.
A few hypersonic Kinzhals with tactical nuclear warheads would surely be a refreshing response to NATO's typical "hit-and-run" tactics.
That would leave Putin with no power. So no, that is not going to happen.
As for how competent Russia is, we have seen that. They are not.
Says who?
Just as you don't expect an immediate all out nuclear armageddon as a response to your attempts to "bomb shit out of Russia", there won't be an "armageddon" response when Russia retaliates wiping a few crucial military installations from with the face of the Earth.
Nah, going all out with a civilisation-ending scenario would be the last resort, when everything is lost, and every other possible and dislikable option had been exhausted.
Up until then it will be a nice long and bloody escalation. Tactical nukes, chemical and bio-weapons provocations, assassinations, terrorist attacks, mass mobilisation and conscription -- all the fun stuff akin to what had been done to the Arab world, but on a much grander scale and incomparably higher stakes.
I'd doubt even the US would able to sit this one out. Can't imagine their shock from an actual real war, given what kind of tragedies were mere child's play things like 9/11 or Pearl Harbor.
Except of course Ukrainians are paying for it with their lives, sacrificing themselves for the safety of the rest of the world.
You meant that they are conscripted/mobilized and sent for slaughter for the safety of establishment's political interests?
So US currently engaged in Syria , Iraq and Libya is also slavery?
Im not sure any of those are akin to slavery. Choosing #2 as a hill we shall die on is particularly galling.
The poll where Russian soldiers pointed guns at crimeans in polling stations happened only in people's imaginations.
I, for one, am looking forward to dying of cold this winter on the principle of rejecting a democratic vote in Eastern Europe while we lavish support on such good and free countries as Saudi Arabia that only invade their neighbor in a good way.
This is the hill the western hegemony dies then let it be. The fbi is tracking all anti-nato comments so just be careful
That's only true on elastic consumption.
I mean, Europe's got something like 7 times the economy of Russia. And two European countries also have nukes and are on the UN permanent security council. If the sanctions against Russia weren't enough to stop the war, this winter is unlikely to be bad enough to stop Europen support of Ukraine.
Conversely, if Russia finds that it can wield its fuel as a weapon capable of destroying Europe by either riots or total economic collapse, then Europe automatically has an existential threat that only ends when Russia can no longer play that card.
And America will do what serves American interests, not necessarily what serves European interests, and they're not threatened by Russia cutting off its gas exports.
But it makes sense from their point of view. The only reason to export to the West is to swap for real goods and services from the West. Since the West isn’t selling anything to Russia there’s little economic reason for Russia to sell anything to the West.
Russia has its own floating rate currency. It has no need of our promises.
I explained why it isn't their source of income. They have their own currency with a floating exchange rate. Therefore what you think is their 'source of income' isn't. The FX system means that a Russian exporters 'source of income' (that which they use to pay their staff and suppliers) is the expenditure of the Russian importer, or the generosity of the Russian government sector - primarily the Bank of Russia. [0]
In local currency terms it is the Bank of Russia buying the gas, not the EU. That maintains the rouble monetary circulation in Russia, countering the drain to Rouble net savings and taxation.
[0]: https://new-wayland.com/blog/how-russian-gas-is-paid-for/
"Size" of economy is not a real metrics.
You can have a huge-ass economy based on providing high-margin services, but it would be worthless if it is not sustainable.
On the other hand, take Russia that does not really do much of global market high-margin services economy, but has sustainable enough industries.
As for problems getting anything, they cant even source potatoes for something as basic as fries.
That doesn't mean their interests are the same as mine.
I'm not ukrainian, or russian, whatever the outcome of the conflict won't really affect my country unless we go out of our way to involve ourselves in it.
If staying out of it results in cheaper gas at the pump for me, then that's what we should do.
Or, get this, we stop shooting ourselves in the foot, and allow businesses to purchase russian energy again.