RUSSIAN STUDIES

By Alexis Giannoulis
(RIEAS Research Associate & Security Analyst)

Copyright: www.rieas.gr

The autumn and winter of 2011 mark two important anniversaries for European and world history. Ten years ago, the spectacularly tragic events in New York and Washington, DC on September 11th, 2001 marked a new post-Cold War era for global affairs as well as for issues such as national, international security and international cooperation. Twenty years ago, during the period between the summer of 1991 and the December of that year, the world saw the gradual demise of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) following an uneasy period of reforms under Mikhael Gorbachev and a traumatic for all parts concerned decade of immense financial and leadership problems toppled with a painfully costly war and occupation in Afghanistan.

Dimitris B. Kokkinos
Managing Partner
INDEURCOG Energy Consultants Ltd.

Copyright: www.rieas.gr

Note: The paper was delivered by Mr. Dimitris B. Kokkinos at the Conference “Caspian Energy Crossroads: The New Energy Routes and Axis”, organized by RIEAS and the Press Code Journal at Titania Hotel (29 January 2009) in Athens, Greece.

My ten years of involvement as an E.C. external consultant and my position INOGATE coordinator in a number of Inogate projects gave me a good understanding of the hydrocarbon situation in Russia, Central Asia, the Caucasus and Eastern Europe.

I consider the link between the European Union and RUSSIA in the supply and consumption of natural gas as vital to the European Union interests and I contribute this article stating that the views expressed are strictly my own.

The present state of affairs in the supply of Russian Gas to Europe underwent an acute crisis. The acuteness of this crisis does not however make it short. The many parameters of this crisis threaten to make it endemic.

There is no doubt that a main factor of the Gas dispute is the political quarrel between Russia and Ukraine. Russia considers that Ukraine is almost not a state but a mix of Russian and other peoples and its Government and ruling elite are neither trustworthy nor strong, which is not completely wrong.