“We will not supply natural gas, oil, coal, heating oil — we will not supply anything,” Putin said in a defiant address to the plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum, held in the Russian faraway city of Vladivostok. East. Putin added that Moscow would let “the wolf’s tail freeze,” referring to a famous Russian fairy tale. But in the West’s own defiant response, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reiterated on Wednesday that the European Union intends to break Russia’s grip on global energy markets and will continue with more than just a cap on oil prices but also in natural gas prices. . “Not only because Russia is an unreliable supplier, as we have seen in the last days, weeks, months, but also because Russia is actively manipulating the gas market,” von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels. “I am deeply convinced that with our unity, our determination, our solidarity, we will prevail.” Russia’s Gazprom says it won’t reopen Nord Stream gas pipeline to Europe as planned In his combative, at times defiant, remarks, Putin said he expected his country to emerge stronger from the war in Ukraine and issued threats aimed at pressuring the West to ease sanctions imposed on Russia since the invasion of February 24. “I am sure that we have not lost anything and will not lose anything,” Putin said. “The main thing is to strengthen our dominance and that is the inevitable result of what is happening now.” Putin said Russia would continue its military action in Ukraine and said the “polarization” caused by the conflict would only benefit Russia as it purges “harmful” elements inside the country. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on September 7 that Russia won, not lost, from the conflict in Ukraine because it was embarking on a new sovereign path. (Video: Reuters) Western intelligence agencies estimate that Russia has lost tens of thousands of soldiers in the six months of war and a huge amount of military equipment that the country is struggling to replace. The Russian campaign has stalled in recent weeks and Ukraine, though still largely outgunned, is waging a counter-offensive in the south aimed at recapturing occupied territory. As punishment for the Russian invasion, which initially sought – and failed – to seize Kyiv, the capital, and topple the government of President Volodymyr Zelensky, Western powers imposed an extraordinary barrage of economic sanctions and export control measures aimed at cripple Russia’s economy. But the results fell short of expectations as energy prices soared and Russia redirected gas and oil sales to Asia. Speaking on Wednesday, Putin called the G-7’s proposed oil and gas price caps “stupid” and said they would further destabilize European economies. He also threatened that Russia would pull out of existing supply contracts if the caps came into effect. “Will there be political decisions that contradict the contracts? Yes, we will not fulfill them. We will offer absolutely nothing if it conflicts with our interests,” Putin said, underscoring Moscow’s shift to Asian markets. Western sanctions are hurting but not yet crushing the Russian economy On Friday, Gazprom, the Russian state gas behemoth that operates critical pipelines supplying Europe, indefinitely cut off the flow to Germany through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which accounted for about 35% of all European natural gas imports. gas from Russia last year. In a further ominous development, Russian officials and pro-Kremlin Telegram channels widely shared this week a video purporting to show Europe freezing in winter. The video shows a Gazprom employee walking towards a closed gas valve, followed by scenes of a snow-covered city. Online sleuths identified the frozen city as Krasnoyarsk in Siberia, which does not use natural gas but suffers from air pollution as a result of coal-fired power plants. In his speech, Putin rejected the EU’s accusation that Russia is using energy as a weapon and repeated Russia’s earlier claim that technical problems caused the pipeline to fail, complaining that the West had not provided a badly needed turbine to repair it. “Nord Steam 1 is essentially closed now,” Putin said on Wednesday. “There’s an oil spill there — it’s a potentially explosive situation, a fire hazard. … Give us a turbine and we will turn on Nord Stream 1 tomorrow. But they don’t give us anything.” Putin, however, slyly suggested that Moscow was ready to “push the button” and pump gas “as early as tomorrow” through the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which Germany blocked from starting up, much to the Kremlin’s anger . The Russian leader also imposed restrictions on another crucial European import over which Moscow has leverage: grain. Putin claimed that most of the grain recently released from Ukrainian ports thanks to a Turkish-brokered deal to end the Russian blockade was going to the European Union instead of developing countries. Accusing the West of “colonial” behavior, Putin said grain shipments to Europe must be stopped. “Once again, they just cheated the developing countries and continue to cheat them. … With this approach, the scale of the world’s food problems will only increase,” Putin said. “Perhaps we should consider restricting this route for grain and food trade? I will definitely consult with the Turkish president.” G-7 countries say they will cap the price of Russian oil Putin scoffed at suggestions that the impact of Western sanctions would damage the Russian economy, noting that it would only shrink by “about 2 percent or a little more” and that Russia’s 2022 budget would be in surplus. “Russia is facing the West’s economic, financial and technological aggression,” Putin said. “We have passed the peak of most difficulties and the situation is normalizing.” Those estimates were at odds with Russian policymakers at the Russian Central Bank and Ministry of Economic Development, which recently said that while the economy has held up better than expected so far, 2023 could be much tougher as the effects of effects of more sanctions. “No matter how much one wants to isolate Russia, it is impossible to do so,” Putin said. “You just have to look at the map.” The Eastern Economic Forum, held annually in Vladivostok to promote investment opportunities in Russia’s Far East, had few Western visitors this year. At Wednesday’s plenary, Putin sat next to Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, who has been sanctioned by the United States for human rights abuses. In August, Myanmar announced it planned to import oil from Russia, and this week Min Aung Hlaing told Putin the country was ready to pay for imports in Russian rubles, helping Russia’s goal of moving away from the US dollar . China’s top lawmaker Li Zhanshu and high-ranking officials from Armenia and Mongolia also attended the forum. Russia’s ambassador to Beijing, Andrei Denisov, announced on Wednesday that Putin was to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a summit in Uzbekistan next week, in their first face-to-face meeting since the invasion of Ukraine.
War in Ukraine: What you need to know
The last: Grain shipments from Ukraine are being accelerated under the agreement reached by Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations in July. Russia’s blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports had sent food prices skyrocketing and raised fears of more famine in the Middle East and Africa. At least 18 ships, including cargoes of wheat, corn and sunflower oil, have departed. The battle: The conflict on the ground continues as Russia uses its heavy artillery advantage to pound Ukrainian forces, which have at times managed to put up stiff resistance. In the south, Ukraine’s hopes rest on the liberation of the Russian-held Kherson region, and eventually Crimea, which Russia seized in 2014. Fears of disaster at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant remain as both sides accuse each other of bombing it. . The weapons: Western arms supplies are helping Ukraine slow Russian advances. US-supplied High Mobility Artillery Missile Systems (HIMARS) allow Ukrainian forces to strike further behind Russian lines against Russian artillery. Russia has used a range of weapons against Ukraine, some of which have drawn the attention and concern of analysts. Photos: Washington Post photographers have been on the ground since the start of the war — here are some of their strongest works. How you can help: Here are ways those in the US can help support the Ukrainian people as well as the donations people have made around the world. Read his full coverage Russia-Ukraine crisis. Are you on Telegram? Subscribe to our channel for updates and exclusive video.
