‘The Christian Science Monitor’: Armenia – reliable ally of Russia
“The Christian Science Monitor” published a story focusing on Russian PM Vladimir Putin’s foreign policy course, claiming that Putin’s bare-knuckled foreign policy has left Russia without any reliable allies besides Kazakhstan and Armenia.
It’s said that Gazprom has become an “energy weapon” behind Putin's export-energy policy, which has many weaknesses.
“On Nov. 8, energy giant Gazprom plans to start deliveries through Nord Stream, the first natural-gas pipeline linking Russia directly to Germany. The 760-mile pipeline under the Baltic Sea is a personal victory for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who pushed through the project despite technical challenges and opposition from neighbors,” reads the story.
The columnist mentions that Gazprom already owns more than a third of shares in the national gas companies of the three Baltic states and holds at least 50 percent in the pipeline networks of Belarus and Armenia. Only Ukraine has consistently warded off Gazprom’s advances on the pipelines that carry 80 percent of Russian gas exports to Europe.
“Putin’s bare-knuckled foreign policy has left Russia without any reliable allies besides Kazakhstan and Armenia. Putin’s nepotistic model, which he uses to control Russia, has translated poorly to international projects. He made former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder Nord Stream’s chairman in an effort to ease western acceptance of the pipeline. Instead, Mr. Schröder’s Gazprom job made him a laughingstock in Germany. Despite flourishing bilateral trade, the German political class keeps a skeptical distance from Russia,” the story goes on.