Russia's Gazprom Oil Wars. Why does the left let them trade blood for oil?

[HoverBoarder]

This is subset from the Syria and Ukraine thread with a specific focus on the primary reason that Russia is involved in those wars. Oil.

So why if Russia has so blatantly caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands in a bloody quest to line Putin's pockets with blood oil money from his corrupt State owned oil monopoly Gazprom, does hardly anyone on the left raise any objections?


From the Syrian thread:

While this is an old article from 2012, it gets to the heart of the issue:

Syria's Pipelineistan war

More than a year ago, a $10 billion Pipelineistan deal was clinched between Iran, Iraq and Syria for a natural gas pipeline to be built by 2016 from Iran's giant South Pars field, traversing Iraq and Syria, with a possible extension to Lebanon. Key export target market: Europe.

During the past 12 months, with Syria plunged into civil war, there was no pipeline talk. Up until now. The European Union's supreme paranoia is to become a hostage of Russia's Gazprom. The Iran-Iraq-Syria gas pipeline would be essential to diversify Europe's energy supplies away from Russia.

It gets more complicated. Turkey happens to be Gazprom's second-largest customer. The whole Turkish energy security architecture depends on gas from Russia - and Iran. Turkey dreams of becoming the new China, configuring Anatolia as the ultimate Pipelineistan strategic crossroads for the export of Russian, Caspian-Central Asian, Iraqi and Iranian oil and gas to Europe.

Try to bypass Ankara in this game, and you're in trouble. Until virtually yesterday, Ankara was advising Damascus to reform - and fast. Turkey did not want chaos in Syria. Now Turkey is feeding chaos in Syria. Let's examine one of the key possible reasons...

And more specifically from May 2013:
Why Russia is in Syria: Lawrence Solomon

Is Russian President Vladimir Putin supporting the murderous regime in Syria to restore Russia’s influence in the Middle East, lost during the Cold War? Is he flexing Russia’s military might to demonstrate it remains a Superpower? To maintain Russia’s arms sales to Syria, one of its biggest clients? Or is Putin merely acting out of spite, to get back at the U.S...

Russia’s importance on the world stage today rests overwhelmingly on energy, its main source of foreign exchange and — because much of Europe utterly depends on Russian gas — a dominant source of its political influence. The gas is delivered by monopoly exporter Gazprom, until this year the world’s most profitable company. According to unofficial sources, Putin, who has placed his cronies in control of Gazprom and personally makes all of its strategic decisions, uses this company to further his foreign policy, to cement his domestic control by delivering patronage, and to enrich himself — Putin is believed to own 4.5% of Gazprom’s shares, today worth roughly $4-billion.
To maintain Gazprom’s dominance in the European market, Putin has been fighting off competitors on numerous fronts. First, to prevent Europe from acquiring gas from a proposed gas pipeline from Turkey, Putin directed Gazprom to pre-empt it by building an economically dubious rival pipeline to Europe. Then, when it became apparent that Europe had immense shale gas potential, Putin supported Europe’s anti-shale movement, to keep Europe’s gas in the ground on green rationales. Now a new threat to Gazprom’s hegemony has emerged – ever-larger discoveries of natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean’s Levant Basin, much of which would ordinarily be destined for Europe....

Step One in Putin’s Mediterranean gambit involves Israel, by tying down its nine-trillion-cubic-foot Tamar field. Under terms of a 20-year deal completed earlier this year, Gazprom will now be the exclusive seller of Tamar gas. Very likely, Gazprom will soon also secure rights to Israel’s even larger Levianthan field. Step Two involves Cyprus, by securing rights to its gas. This Gazprom seems set to do, largely by acquiring the Greek gas distribution company...

Steps Three and Four involve two other Levant Basin countries, Syria and its client state, Lebanon. By maintaining Assad in power — not least since Syria hosts Russia’s only naval base in the Mediterranean — Putin will have outsized influence over Levant Basin gas, and the plausible means to continue to keep Europe dependent on him. Gazprom’s dismal performance of late makes his success in the Mediterranean that much more crucial.

From Ukraine:

Showdown in Ukraine: Putin’s Quest for Ports, Oil, Pipelines and Gas

There is also another reason for Putin’s intervention in Ukraine and that has to do with Russia elbowing for dominance of the very lucrative and strategically important “energy corridors.”
That is very likely to be the major reason why Putin is willing to risk going to war with the West over Crimea, the pipelines that traverses the Caucasus and the oil and natural gas these pipelines carry westwards to Europe.

Given the geography of the region there are only so many lanes where the pipelines can be laid; and most of them transit through Ukraine. Others travel across Azerbaijan and Turkey. Most of Western Europe’s gas and much of Eastern Europe’s gas travels through Ukraine.

Also:
It’s Not Just Ukraine

The real problem is that Putin has the whole region cornered. And no one seems to notice.

 

[McHrozni]

So why if Russia has so blatantly caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands in a bloody quest to line Putin's pockets with blood oil money from his corrupt State owned oil monopoly Gazprom, does hardly anyone on the left raise any objections?

Because they are opposed by US/West, which is the source of all evil, so anyone opposing them must necessarily be good and pure.

I'm serious btw.

McHrozni

 

[HoverBoarder]

Because they are opposed by US/West, which is the source of all evil, so anyone opposing them must necessarily be good and pure.

I'm serious btw.

McHrozni

I would agree.

Which generally falls into the "Russia doesn't fit their preferred good guy/bad guy world view" category. Coupled with a strong confirmation bias that doesn't allow them to look at or take seriously any news or facts that disagree with that view. With those two together, any wrong can be seen as either OK, or at least OK to be ignored.

 

[McHrozni]

Also:
It’s Not Just Ukraine

The real problem is that Putin has the whole region cornered. And no one seems to notice.

It's a novel approach, one only seen in the realm of anti-capitalist fiction up to now. It's bound to fail, eventually. If he can't even keep Ukraine at bay with this strategy, with a large Russian minority and a substantial friendly voting bloc, he can't keep rest of Europe hostage either.

We've seen how well it works in Belarus. They're his ally, for only as long as he maintains the expensive patronage and cheap gas. Hired friends don't come cheap, and when the cold winds of recession blow, they abandon you, like Ukraine did.

He can do a lot of damage to his neighbors and to democracy, but his grand vision of a new Russian empire, supported by gas and oil money, is a ludicrous fantasy. He needs to be neutered, not because he's a dangerous competitor, but because he's setting the only viable European unity back.

McHrozni

 

[McHrozni]

I would agree.

Which generally falls into the "Russia doesn't fit their preferred good guy/bad guy world view" category. Coupled with a strong confirmation bias that doesn't allow them to look at or take seriously any news or facts that disagree with that view. With those two together, any wrong can be seen as either OK, or at least OK to be ignored.

Some Russophilic retards are justifying the invasion of Ukraine with NATO expansion eastwards.

sarcasm

It makes perfect sense. We'll attack Ukraine, because Estonia joined NATO ten years ago. We have the right to dictate who can and who can't join an alliance designed to counter us. If someone thinks they can join, we'll attack them to show them they shouldn't.

/sarcasm

McHrozni

 

[HoverBoarder]

It's a novel approach, one only seen in the realm of anti-capitalist fiction up to now. It's bound to fail, eventually. If he can't even keep Ukraine at bay with this strategy, with a large Russian minority and a substantial friendly voting bloc, he can't keep rest of Europe hostage either.

We've seen how well it works in Belarus. They're his ally, for only as long as he maintains the expensive patronage and cheap gas. Hired friends don't come cheap, and when the cold winds of recession blow, they abandon you, like Ukraine did.

He can do a lot of damage to his neighbors and to democracy, but his grand vision of a new Russian empire, supported by gas and oil money, is a ludicrous fantasy. He needs to be neutered, not because he's a dangerous competitor, but because he's setting the only viable European unity back.

McHrozni

The problem is that Russia literally can't hold Europe hostage. While the Oilprice.com article noted that: "Russia's Gazprom currently controls almost a fifth of the world's gas reserves. More than half of Ukraine’s and nearly 30% of Europe's gas comes from Russia."

The politico article also noted that "Of course, Russia needs the region, too, and not just to satisfy its geo-political cravings. For Russia, the oil and gas sectors account for more than half of the country’s economy and state budget."

Putin may threaten Europe and its neighbors with oil embargoes, send warships and warplanes into NATO airspace, and half-joke about starting nuclear war. However, Russia could not economically survive the massive drop in profit from cutting off 30% of Europe's oil, they could not survive a military engagement with the West, and the whole world wouldn't survive a major nuclear war.


His grand vision may be dangerous for everyone, but it is also impossible. The sanctions on Russia were entirely Putin's own choice, and despite what the State controlled Russian media says, the Russian people know it as well, and the few allies he has left in the region know it too. The Belarus bribery point is a great example of what will happen when the Putin Recession starts. Public opinion in the former Soviet States against letting Putin negatively affect their countries is a very strong force.

There are cooler heads in Russia who don't want to see Putin take down Russia and start a new cold war. All it will take is time and public opinion to turn Putin from an invincible oligarch into a National embarrassment.

 

[McHrozni]

The problem is that Russia literally can't hold Europe hostage. While the Oilprice.com article noted that: "Russia's Gazprom currently controls almost a fifth of the world's gas reserves. More than half of Ukraine’s and nearly 30% of Europe's gas comes from Russia."

The politico article also noted that "Of course, Russia needs the region, too, and not just to satisfy its geo-political cravings. For Russia, the oil and gas sectors account for more than half of the country’s economy and state budget."

Putin may threaten Europe and its neighbors with oil embargoes, send warships and warplanes into NATO airspace, and half-joke about starting nuclear war. However, Russia could not economically survive the massive drop in profit from cutting off 30% of Europe's oil, they could not survive a military engagement with the West, and the whole world wouldn't survive a major nuclear war.


His grand vision may be dangerous for everyone, but it is also impossible. The sanctions on Russia were entirely Putin's own choice, and despite what the State controlled Russian media says, the Russian people know it as well, and the few allies he has left in the region know it too. The Belarus bribery point is a great example of what will happen when the Putin Recession starts. Public opinion in the former Soviet States against letting Putin negatively affect their countries is a very strong force.

There are cooler heads in Russia who don't want to see Putin take down Russia and start a new cold war. All it will take is time and public opinion to turn Putin from an invincible oligarch into a National embarrassment.

I concur, his dream is completely impossible, and dangerous to everyone. Russia actually stands the most to loose, with the massive losses of international reputation and significant loss of profit due to political discounts and whatnot. He may set European dream back years and decades, maybe even stop it completely, but it will be for nothing. Even in the best-case scenario for him, all he gets is the Soviet scenario where his "allies" need to be constantly propped up economically and in other ways in order to stay loyal. It's a loose-loose situation so glaringly obvious even the legally blind could see it. I certainly hope enough Russians will say "enough" before too much damage is done.

McHrozni

 

[HoverBoarder]

I concur, his dream is completely impossible, and dangerous to everyone. Russia actually stands the most to loose, with the massive losses of international reputation and significant loss of profit due to political discounts and whatnot. He may set European dream back years and decades, maybe even stop it completely, but it will be for nothing. Even in the best-case scenario for him, all he gets is the Soviet scenario where his "allies" need to be constantly propped up economically and in other ways in order to stay loyal. It's a loose-loose situation so glaringly obvious even the legally blind could see it. I certainly hope enough Russians will say "enough" before too much damage is done.

McHrozni

Russia definitely has a lot to loose from Putin's belligerent tactics, but I guess we will see what happens when the Putin Recession gets into full swing. Once people really start to notice the difference personally, the intense propaganda based Russian controlled State media could start to backfire.


Eric Liu in an article about former Chinese ambassador Gary Locke had an excellent comment about State controlled propaganda media:

This is the price of propaganda: No one believes what you say, but they believe you meant to say it.

Once enough people in Russia really start to question RT and other State controlled media, because they can personally see that they are lying, the blame will largely not fall on the media (since they are just following orders), but on the people controlling what they say.

 

[McHrozni]

Once enough people in Russia really start to question RT and other State controlled media, because they can personally see that they are lying, the blame will largely not fall on the media (since they are just following orders), but on the people controlling what they say.

There's hope for that, yes. The danger is that the uneducated masses of Russia are big enough to fall for the Orwellian lies "it's all West's fault!" and "we're just turning the corner, wait a few more months to a year!".

McHrozni

 

[uke2se]

There's no option for "The left does object". Granted, I'm not a leftist by European standards, but I'd say the left does object to Putin's shenanigans. Not everyone on the left, of course, but then, not everyone on the right does either.

 

[McHrozni]

There's no option for "The left does object". Granted, I'm not a leftist by European standards, but I'd say the left does object to Putin's shenanigans. Not everyone on the left, of course, but then, not everyone on the right does either.

I think that the issue is mainly the leftist option that sees US as the universal boogeyman that does everything wrong. Chomsky is a good example. Has he condemned Russia recently? He did condemn US and Israel this year, but the death toll in Ukraine exceeded that in Gaza by a factor of at least 2.

McHrozni

 

[HoverBoarder]

There's no option for "The left does object". Granted, I'm not a leftist by European standards, but I'd say the left does object to Putin's shenanigans. Not everyone on the left, of course, but then, not everyone on the right does either.

You're definitely right, I apologize for not including that option. I just for the large part don't see it.


Have there been any protests, or are there any articles, or any other examples that you can point me to?

 

[Spindrift]

You're definitely right, I apologize for not including that option. I just for the large part don't see it.


Have there been any protests, or are there any articles, or any other examples that you can point me to?

The left of what?

 

[WildCat]

Because they are opposed by US/West, which is the source of all evil, so anyone opposing them must necessarily be good and pure.

I'm serious btw.

McHrozni

Pretty much. The same blindness that radical environmentalists have who promote communism as a cure for environmental damage, ignoring that communist countries cause far more environmental damage than capitalist ones.

 

[tyr_13]

Internationally I'm 'center' but that makes me 'left' in the US, and I have many left friends too. None of them are supportive of Russia's crap, and several (like myself!) are extremely critical of Putin and Russia's actions. That the useful idiots that do support Russia in it's latest asshattery are on the left should be no more surprising than that Nazi apologists are on the right.

I'm not sure what protests would do, or why anyone would go to them in the west. Most of the west is already opposing Russia. There isn't enough support on the left or right for more extreme actions currently for those kinds of protests and the like.

 

[dudalb]

Internationally I'm 'center' but that makes me 'left' in the US, and I have many left friends too. None of them are supportive of Russia's crap, and several (like myself!) are extremely critical of Putin and Russia's actions. That the useful idiots that do support Russia in it's latest asshattery are on the left should be no more surprising than that Nazi apologists are on the right.

I'm not sure what protests would do, or why anyone would go to them in the west. Most of the west is already opposing Russia. There isn't enough support on the left or right for more extreme actions currently for those kinds of protests and the like.

The most effective protest is being made by Western Investors:They simply don't want to put any more money into Russia as long as Putin's in charge. That is doing a lot more damage then the official sanctions,though I support the sanctions 100%.

 

[bit_pattern]

Some people like to equate any attempt to explain a situation with justifying it. In their narrow view of the world if you adopt a slightly more nuanced view than "Russia bad, America good" then you're obviously a Putin loving Russiophile

 

[bit_pattern]

Pretty much. The same blindness that radical environmentalists have who promote communism as a cure for environmental damage, ignoring that communist countries cause far more environmental damage than capitalist ones.

I'm assuming this is just another phantasm conjured up in the deranged mind of climate deniers and other RWNJs?

 

[bit_pattern]

There's no option for "The left does object".

That wouldn't fit the narrative.

 

[WildCat]

I'm assuming this is just another phantasm conjured up in the deranged mind of climate deniers and other RWNJs?

Then this must be a phantasm I conjured up... http://www.zombietime.com/climate_movement_drops_mask_admits_communist_agenda/