Russia becomes an “adversarial regime” to the US
Russia-US relationships appear to be entering a hostile phase. After Vice President Dick Cheney sharp-worded speech in May, Republican Senator Richard Lugar, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, took the floor to lash out at Moscow. During his visit to Vilnius Lugar accused Moscow accused the Kremlin of applying Russia’s huge oil and gas resources tools meant to intimidate and blackmail Russia’s neighbors so they start obeying the Kremlin’s orders.
At the new energy summit in West Lafayette, Indiana, Chairman of US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Republican Senator Richard Lugar enlisted Russia together with Venezuela and Iran among “adversarial regimes” that are “using energy supplies as leverage against their neighbors.” He declared that that energy is getting to be the best kind of weapons for those that can have them.
“Nations experiencing a cutoff of energy supplies, or even the threat of a cutoff, may become desperate, increasing the chances of armed conflict, terrorism, and economic collapse,” warned Lugar and called on the US to promptly work out a new national policy in the energy sphere so as to ward off geopolitical threats on the part of oil-rich regimes.
Russia promptly responded to the US senator. Mikhail Margelov, Chairman of the Russian Federation’s International Relations Committee, branded Richard Lugar as a Russophobe and that his presentation reflected his own opinion. The Russian senator noted that America is using energy resources as weapons, and that it incited Central Asian countries to plan their oil and gas pipelines to bypass Russia. Margelov admitted that Russia is well aware of the meaning of oil and gas as weapons, but that it keeps this sword in its sheath.
COMMENTARY
Fedor LUKYANOV, Editor in Chief, “Russia in Global Politics” Magazine:
Moscow-Washington relations are dominated by problems that constantly emerge and which stem from Russia’s awareness of the incredible might it allegedly has owing to its oil and gas financial resources; Russia believes it can act the way it chooses. The Kremlin is not paying sufficient attention to its foreign partners’ reaction, including the United States.
Russia’s foreign policy is strongly dependent upon commercial interests, certain groups, companies, and large state-run corporations; Russia believes that a quick buck should be made where it can be earned.
Russia can hardly pose an energy threat to the United States. This is explained by the fact that Russian-US energy trade turnover is kept on a small scale. America is not Russia’s important customer, although it could have become a very important one. Americans, starting with Dick Cheyney, are talking a lot about blackmail, that Russia is using its energy resources for political purposes; they are citing Ukraine, Georgia, and the European Union as examples, considering that the EU has also encountered problems on the part of Russia’s Gazprom. The interesting point is that the European Union appears to have a different attitude. No statements like those of Cheyney and Lugar’s are made in Europe, although Europe ought to be most concerned about the issue. European politicians realize that the situation is much more complex than the way it is viewed by Washington. Americans can afford such statements precisely because they are dependent on Russia, whereas Europe and countries bordering on Russia are. Here one is faced with a political game in which Americans are discharging Europe’s function that Europe is afraid to discharge.
It would be a big shame for Russia to actually use its energy resources as weapons. If so, Russia and its Gazprom Corporation would suffer the worst in the end. It suffices to recall the Soviet Union during its period stagnation and Cold War. The Soviet government never mixed politics and ideology with the power industry and business; they knew only too well that this could not be allowed. When an oil pipeline starts beings used as a means of pressure, then most of the attendant revenues — or at least a large part of them — will stop being received, as the customers will find bypasses. Now what will happen to this commodity remains to be explained. The way Russia is acting is another evidence of its weakness. The Soviet Union did not use its energy resources as weapons; it had lots of other tools. Russia does not have these tools, yet it is trying to use its energy resources as ones. A very dangerous attempt for the state in general and Gazprom in particular, considering that this company is trying to become a transnational corporation.
I believe that Russia will resort to a very rigid and pragmatic tactic in regard to Ukraine and other neighboring countries. We want our money, nothing else. And we want to get as much money as we say we have to receive.
