PREFACE/ISSUE
Accusations of Sabotage: Russia continuously blames Anglo-Saxon nations for the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines.Timeline of Events: The post outlines a timeline surrounding the explosions, detailing suspicious meetings and the movements of a Russian submarine.Preemptive Planning Allegations: Russia posits that the UK engaged in preemptive planning and damage control, citing a meeting between UK and Russian defense officials shortly after the attacks.Call for Investigative Action: The lack of advancement in investigations by Sweden, Germany, and Denmark is highlighted alongside Russia's demand for an international inquiry.#
Effectiveness of Sanctions: The author questions the effectiveness of EU sanctions imposed on Russia, suggesting they have been evaded.
Official Statements: The piece includes numerous remarks from Russian officials, including Putin and Medvedev, reiterating charges against the West and adopting increasingly aggressive rhetoric toward the UK.
Potential for Escalation: The post concludes with a contemplation of the risk of escalation, including the possibility of a preemptive strike against Britain.
- The largest energy exporter = Russia.
- The largest energy importer = Europe.
- UK, USA are on the side-line.
14 Mar 2023 - Of the 10.1 million barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil and condensate that Russia produced in 2021, Russia exported more than 45%, or 4.7 million b/d. The majority of Russia's crude oil and condensate exports went to OECD Europe, which received almost half of Russia's total exports.
The geopolitics driving force explained in a separate post:
Mackinder Roadblocks against EA development/integration
II. Was Russia enemy to UK or trying to do business or both?
2 July 2012 - BP Steers Clear of Nord Stream Pipeline Extension to UK17 Oct 2021 - Russia ‘will come to rescue’ of UK if needed during gas crisis, ambassador saysRussia will do what it can to assist the UK and could potentially even “come to the rescue” amid problems linked to rising energy costs, the country’s ambassador has suggested.Andrei Kelin also denied that Russia is withholding gas supplies, appearing to suggest commitments to increase supply will take time to take effect.
The UK energy glut explained in separate post:
Mission accomplished - UK - from Energy Importer to Energy Exporter
IV. The UK implements damage control and event management
EUS registered 2 tremors in the Baltic Sea on the night of Monday 26 September at 02.03 & at 19.03, both Danish summer tine.
26 Sept 2022 - UK, Russian defence officials meet in London;
26 Sep 2022 - 19:01 (19:01 GMT)
The UK’s chief of defence staff has held talks with the Russian defence attaché at the Ministry of Defence in London.
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin and Colonel Maxim Elovik met as part of ongoing efforts to “strengthen military to military channels of communication” with Russia.
[M: How so the UK planned in advance a meeting with RU embassy in London for the day when Nordstream pipelines were attacked? Coincidence?]
[M: How so they highlight that communication lines must be open? Coincidence?]
[M: Note exact time - after 1st attack, 2nd attack at 7pm Danish time, there is just 1h difference, meeting in London was at 7pm. Coincidence?]
28 Sept 2022 - The Russian Federation opened a criminal case under an article on international terrorism (part 1 of Article 361 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
V. Liz Truss seems to have a submarines phobia
28 Sept 2022 - Where is Liz Truss? Our prime minister has gone missing
We haven’t heard from Truss since she spoke in the graveyard slot at the United Nations, overnight, a week ago. It was Kwasi Kwarteng’s who announced his emergency Budget on Friday
[M: 28th is Wednesday, 26h was Monday - the day NS was blown, but it seems Liz Truss has disappeared already on Wed 21st, last posted after submitting the minibudget. No trace, no message to nation. Was she hiding or was she cleared out because the mission was not going well? Note that Swedish navy was tracking some submarine. Was Liz Truss as a key person hidden in some bunker? Note that Boris Johnson also was not in London, supposedly left UK for 3 consecutive holidays with family - Slovenia, Greece, Caribbean]
29 Sept 2022 - A Russian submarine was spotted sailing on the surface off the Brittany coast.The French FREMM frigate Normandie and a Caiman helicopter tracked the Russian Kilo-class submarine Novorossiysk. As per reports, the French navy escorted the Russian submarine in the Bay of Biscay. The British and Spanish warships had also been involved in monitoring the submarine’s movements.
[M: Russia has two subs in Syria Tartu base, Novorossiysk was recalled to go back to Baltics/North Sea (?). Were there some indicies, warnings that Russia decided to sent there the sub? Why did it surface?]
29 Sept 2022 - Russian Nuclear Message to Britain and France:
The Novorossiysk submarine, carrying nuclear-tipped cruise missiles, emerged from the depths of the mid-Atlantic and approached the shores of Britain and France, making its presence especially clear.The Russian diesel-electric submarine of the Kilo II class, named Novorossiysk, was launched in 2014. Its feature is almost complete invisibility for anti-submarine systems (Codename means Black Hole).
French Atlantic Fleet Commander Olivier Lebas says this is the first time a Russian submarine has been sighted near the Bay of Biscay, on the border between Spain, France and Britain, and it certainly sends a message to Britain and France.
[M: Did the RU submarine killer hunted the UK submarine responsible for the sabotage and "soft-killed" it? Was the message "UK SUB, GOT YOU, YOU WOULD BE SUNK, SURFACING"? {perhaps???}. In some other news I read that RU killer subs often go in pairs. What happened there? Shadow fight? Are all subs accounted for?]
30 Sept 2022 - NATO Threatens Retaliation After Gas Leaks It Says Were Likely Sabotage
The NATO military alliance warned Thursday it would retaliate for any attacks on the critical infrastructure of its 30 member countries and joined other Western officials in citing sabotage as the likely cause of damage to two natural gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea.
[M: Considering the Nordstream is 51% Russian this is very odd statement. Was this a false flag to provoke for retaliation?]
[M: There is a possibility that Russia was related to following news from a few days earlier...]
VI. Examining Russian official news about the NS affair
30 September 2022 - Putin says 'Anglo-Saxon' powers blew up Nord Stream pipelines“Sanctions were not enough for the Anglo-Saxons: they moved on to sabotage. It is hard to believe but it is a fact that they organised the blasts on the Nord Stream international gas pipelines.""They began to destroy the pan-European energy infrastructure," Putin said. "It is clear to everyone who benefits from this. Of course, he who benefits did it."Russia's top spy said that Moscow had intelligence indicating that the West was behind what he said was a "terrorist act" against the pipelines.
30 September 2022 - Rishi Sunak Govt Slams 'lie Of Epic Scale' As Russia Blames UK For Nord Stream Attack
3 Oct 2022 - Britain's former First Sea Lord hails nuclear weapons as the 'ultimate safeguard' [M: Radakin]
5 Oct 2022 -British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace on Wednesday spoke out against involving Russia in the investigation of the incidents on the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines.
11 Oct 2022 - Patrol Ship Launched After 'International Terrorism' Against Nord Stream
"As the recent act of international terrorism on the Nord Stream gas pipelines has shown, the West has exceeded the limits of reason and is trying with all its might to deprive our country of strategic advantages," Poltavchenko was quoted by Naval News. "Therefore, such border vessels as the Purga will be very necessary for our fleet to protect and preserve Russian borders."
Russian state news agency Tass reported Monday that the U.S. Navy said a P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance flight near the sabotaged Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea a few hours after the damage was detected was not related to the leaks.
The recent terrorist attack on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 natural gas pipelines was aimed at undermining the energy security of the entire continent, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.
12 Oct 2022 - Russia claims attack on NordStream is "act of state terrorism" .
"The recent terrorist attack on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 natural gas pipelines was aimed at undermining the energy security of the entire continent", Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.
12 Oct 2022 - Putin suggests major gas hub in Türkiye with Nord Stream supplies
Putin has also claimed that the sabotage action against Nord Stream was ”an act of international terrorism,” writes news agency Reuters Wednesday.12 Oct 2022 - Global Energy Infrastructure Is At Risk After Nord Stream Pipeline Hit, Says Putin
The attacks were an act of terror that set “the most dangerous precedent,” the Russian president told a Moscow energy forum on Wednesday. “It shows that any critically important object of transport, energy or utilities infrastructure is under threat” irrespective of where it is located or by whom it is managed, he said.
12 Oct 2022 - Putin says goal behind Nord Stream attack was to undermine continent’s energy security
Putin described the attack on the Nord Streams as "a most dangerous precedent."
"It shows that any vital transport, energy or utility infrastructure is now in jeopardy regardless of where it is located or who operates it or whether those are subsea pipelines or ground-based ones."
13 Oct 2022 - President #Putin: I have noted many times that #NordStream lacks any political background. It is a strictly commercial project, in which Russian and European companies take part on equal terms. Hence, #Russia and our partners in #EU should resolve the future of #NS1 & #NS2.
VII. Liz Truss seems to have a submarines phobia - Part II
15 Oct 2022 - Kerch Bridge, Nord Stream the handiwork of top-tier saboteursBig blast attacks required highly sophisticated technology and ultra-skilled secret operators that only a few nations possess
It is increasingly clear that the destruction of part of the Kerch-Crimea bridge and the destruction of three strands of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines required highly sophisticated technology and the skill of secret operators.
According to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) investigation, the truck bomb that destroyed part of the Kerch Strait Crimea bridge “was concealed in 22 pallets of plastic film rolls weighing a total of 22,770 kilos.”
The investigative journalism site Greyzone said on October 10 that the British Secret Service (MI-6) drew up a plan last April to blow up the Kerch Bridge and shared the plan with Ukraine.
17 Oct 2022 - Keep calm Britain, Liz Truss isn’t hiding under a desk
Liz Truss had a ‘very good reason’ for a Commons no-show, but it’s a secret.
17 Oct 2022 - SEA MONSTER Putin’s city-killer sub Belgorod with Poseidon nuke drone seen just 270 miles from Nato border in chilling satellite pic
19 Oct 2022 - Britain must urgently review its defence in light of Putin’s nuclear threat
[M: Imagine a scenario that US informed UK that their attack on Nordstream excludes NATO from possible Russian retaliation as legally the armed attack against pipeline which is majority owned by Russia could be considered an act or war against another state - analysis]
24 Oct 2022 - A statement on the Chief of the Defence Staff’s call with the Russian Chief of the General Staff, General of the Army Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov:
"The military leaders both agreed on the importance of maintaining open channels of communication between the UK and Russia to manage the risk of miscalculation and to facilitate de-escalation."
[M: This same sequence/Modus Operandi looks very similar to the Nordstream case. A Key infrastructure is hit, the UK PM Liz Truss is in "hiding" and then US sets a de-escalation meeting to avoid/maage/prevent over-reaction from RU side.]
The conversation followed the Defence Secretary’s call with his Russian counterpart yesterday and a call between the Foreign Ministers of France, the UK, and the USA last night.
VIII. British Special Boat Service Accused
29 Oct 2022 - UK Royal Navy officials involved in Nord Stream terrorist act
“According to available information, Royal Navy representatives took part in the planning and implementation of a terrorist act in the Baltic Sea on September 26 to blow up the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines”, the MoD said in a statement on Saturday, Sputnik reported.
The Russian Prosecutor General's Office classified the pipeline blasts as acts of international terrorism. According to Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, the investigation of terrorist attacks can only be considered reliable and objective if Moscow takes part in the probe.
30 Oct 2022 - Russia 'unfriendly countries' list expands, UK territories added
1 Nov 2022 - Russia’s defence ministry said on Saturday that British navy personnel had blown up the Nord Stream pipelines in September.
1 Nov 2022 - British Special Boat Service Accused Of Nord Stream Pipeline
[M: Special post dedicated to UK SBS - here]
1 Nov 2022 - Russia accuses UK of involvement in attack on Black Sea fleet, Nord Stream gas pipelines
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says Moscow mulling retaliatory steps
The Kremlin on Tuesday said Russia's intelligence has information about London's involvement in attacks on Nord Stream gas pipelines and its Black Sea fleet in the port of Sevastopol."Our special services ... have evidence that the leadership and coordination of the attack on Sevastopol Bay was carried out by British military consultants.""There is also evidence that Britain is involved in sabotage ... a terrorist act on critical energy infrastructure, the Nord Stream pipelines," spokesman Dmitry Peskov told at a press briefing in Moscow.Moscow expects that despite the silence, European capitals will analyze the information on London's involvement in attack on Nord Stream gas pipelines, Peskov said."We cannot leave such actions for nothing. We will think over further steps. ... We will do what we have to do," he stressed.
[M: So far Russia has NOT retaliated in kind. It leaves to decide SWE, DK, GER investigations due to their primary jurisdiction. As a majority owner there are legal implications in how the violent act is defined. Post about it here, and post about who promoted which view here]
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman on Tuesday urged the former UK prime minister to explain her message allegedly sent to the US secretary of state right after the accident at Nord Stream gas pipelines at the Baltic Sea."Honestly, I don't care who and how (they) got this information. I am interested in London's response to the following question: Did Britain's Prime Minister Liz Truss send a message to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken right after the explosion at Nord Stream gas pipeline with the words 'it's done?'," Maria Zakharova wrote on Telegram.Zakharova added that "millions of people all over the world are waiting for an answer to this question," stressing that "they have the right to know what happened to the global energy security and what is the role of Anglo-Saxons in the committed terrorist attack."
1 Nov 2022 - Russia Considers Retaliation Against UK After Blaming Royal Navy For Nord Stream Blast
Russia said on Tuesday it was considering what “further steps” to take in connection with its allegation that Britain was responsible for an attack on the Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines.Russia’s defense ministry said on Saturday that British navy personnel had blown up the Nord Stream pipelines in September, an assertion that London said was false and designed to distract from Russian military failures in Ukraine.“There is evidence that Britain is involved in sabotage … a terrorist act against vital energy infrastructure,”Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.“Such actions cannot be put aside. Of course, we will think about further steps. It definitely cannot be left like this,” Peskov said.
3 Nov 2022 - UK’s Defence Committee refused access to UK Special Forces in heated debate with Defence Minister.
In a British Parliamentary Deference Select Committee on the 2nd November, 2022, the UK Secretary of State for Defence, Ben Wallace, has been challenged for his failure to permit members of the Defence Select Committee access to UK Special Forces.In a heated exchanged, the Committee chair, Tobias Ellwood MP said that the UK Special Forces were not the best in the world ‘about scrutiny’, and that the Special Forces – including units such as the Special Air Service (SAS) and Special Boat Services (SBS) – were “not above scrutiny.”When asked if the Ministry of Defence could facilitate a visit to Hereford, home of the SAS, the Deference Minister said “no” and went on to argue that “this committee does not have oversight of Special Forces and its operations.”The chair of the Defence Committee disagreed, saying: “I’m sorry, we have oversight of the Armed Forces in the UK Defence.”Mr Wallace then said the Special Forces were very busy in operational work.
...Earlier this year, Action on Armed Violence raised concerns about a lack of parliamentary oversight of the UK’s Special Forces...
16 Nov 2022 - FM #Lavrov: Countries need to stop weaponising #energy
...to settle political scores, as EU did for many years, incl with #NordStream. It is important to remove discriminatory & artificial barriers from world energy markets, star honest dialogue between energy suppliers & consumers.
18 Nov 2022 - Swedish prosecutor confirms Nord Stream leak was sabotage
Investigators had already said that preliminary inspections into the September gas leaks had reinforced suspicions of sabotage.
Investigators found traces of explosives at the Baltic Sea site where two natural pipelines were damaged in an act of "gross sabotage" in September, the prosecutor leading Sweden's preliminary investigation said on Friday, November 18.
[M: dedicated post about legal definition of the act is - here]
Mats Ljungqvist of the Swedish Prosecution Authority said the investigators carefully documented the area where the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines ruptured causing significant methane leaks.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday it was "very important to find those who are behind the explosion."
Sweden's findings of "a sabotage act or a terrorist act – you can call it whatever you like" confirm "the information that the Russian side has had," Mr. Peskov said. Moscow needs to wait for a full damage assessment to decide whether to repair the pipelines, he said.
15 Dec 2022 - Canada revokes Nord Stream sanctions waiver
Canada will no longer allow Nord Stream turbines to be repaired in Montreal and returned to Germany, the Canadian government announced on Wednesday.
Authorities in Canada have revoked a temporary sanctions waiver that would have allowed the transportation and repair of a damaged turbine.
27 Dec 2022 - Former Russian president accuses West of lying, says there can be no business with Anglo-Saxon world
'The behaviour of Washington and others this year is the last warning to all nations: there can be no business with the Anglo-Saxon world [because] it is a thief, a swindler, a card-sharp that could do anything,” said Dmitry Medvedev.
IX. Situation in 2023
2 Feb 2023 - United States involved in Nord Stream explosions: Russian FM
Russian President Vladimir Putin has previously blamed Britain for blowing up the pipelines, which London denied.
[M: This is not contradicting to the statement that the UK is the main prime suspect. Based on my investigation there are 23 crimes, the another being the "cover-up". The meaning of "involved" is nowhere explained.]
9 Feb 2023 - World must know truth about Nord Stream blasts, preparators must be punished: Kremlin
“The world must find out the truth about who carried out this act of sabotage,” Peskov told reporters. “This is a very dangerous precedent: if someone did it once, they can do it again anywhere in the world.”
9 Feb 2023 - White House says blog post on Nord Stream explosion 'utterly false'
The White House on Wednesday dismissed a blog post by a U.S. investigative journalist alleging the United States was behind explosions of the Nord Stream gas pipelines as "utterly false and complete fiction."
Reuters has not corroborated the report, published by U.S. investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, which said an attack was carried out last September at the direction of President Joe Biden.
"This is utterly false and complete fiction," said Adrienne Watson, a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council. Spokespeople for the CIA and State Department said the same.
16 Feb 2023 - Moscow believes Nord Stream blasts are intl terrorist attacks
We qualify the incident as an act of international terrorism that requires a comprehensive and independent investigation," the statement said.
"It wouldn’t hurt if the US, which claims the monopoly on the truth, shifted from empty accusations directed at us to the matter at hand and at least try to prove it wasn’t involved in the destruction of the gas pipelines."
[M: IF the USA excludes itself, knowing that SWE investigator Mats Ljungqvist stating that "I never believed it was Russia" it would reduce the pool of suspects. Hence USA is not going to do this.]
15 March 2023 - Putin calls Ukraine role in Nord Stream blasts ‘sheer nonsense’
“Who is interested? Theoretically, the United States is interested in stopping the supply of Russian energy to the European market and supplying volumes of its own,” Putin told an interviewer. ... “Such an explosion, so powerful and at such depth, could only be conducted by experts backed by the entire potential of a state that has relevant technologies,” he added.[M: The Sy Hersh report blaming USA is double sworded issue. It did help to turn public opinion from Russia but to (based on my investigation) wrong culprit. The UK hides behind the Trans-Atlantic Alliance. The USA gets a very bad PR. The USA can not disclose thar its ally UK was responsible.]
The Kremlin last week described the claims about Ukrainian involvement in the explosions as part of a cover-up by the West.Putin said the blasts were carried out on a “state level” and dismissed as “complete nonsense” suggestions an autonomous pro-Ukraine group was responsible.
“The Europeans have lost a gene of independence, sovereignty and national interest,” Putin said with a smirk. “The more they [Americans] hit them on their noses or the top of their heads, the lower they bend and the broader they smile.”
9 March 2023 - A job for professionals
Russian President Vladimir Putin decided early on who was responsible for blowing up the Nord Stream pipes. "The sanctions are not enough for the Anglo-Saxons," Putin said during his speech on the annexation of four Ukrainian territories at the end of September 2022 - just four days after the explosions. Therefore, they have now resorted to acts of sabotage and are destroying the entire European infrastructure such as the gas pipes of Nord Stream. Among "Anglo-Saxons" Russian propaganda understands an alleged alliance between the USA and Great Britain, which, in Putin's interpretation, dominates the Western world.
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov also considers the existence of a private pro-Ukrainian group to be unlikely. The demolition was too complicated and could only be carried out by a professional secret service, he said.
6 April 2023 - Putin urges Denmark to involve Russia in Nord Stream probe
Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the Danish ambassador Jakob Henningsen directly on Wednesday in the matter of Nord Stream sabotage, according to Russian news agency Tass as Sweden said it was "still unclear" who was responsible.
"We hope, Mr Ambassador, that the Danes will support our proposal to establish an independent international commission to investigate all the circumstances of the incident," the Russian President noted.
According to the Russian news agency Ria, Putin said at the ceremony that relations between Russia and Denmark have historically been close.
"But there is unrest in the Baltic Sea at the moment," he noted..
"We turn over every stone and leave nothing to chance," Mats Ljungqvist of the Public Prosecutor's Office, which is investigating the case, said in a press release."We hope to be able to confirm who committed the crime, but it should be noted that it will most likely be difficult given the circumstances…There is a variety of information and reports about the sabotage of the gas lines," he added.
Danish police are also still investigating the sabotage.
6 April 2023 - 'Britain Always Has Been, Is Now, And Will Be Our Eternal Enemy': Russia's Dmitry Medvedev
UK has sanctioned five people connected to the investigation against imprisoned journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza, who has been labelled as a foreign agent.
Britain has historically shown animosity towards Moscow and will do so going forward, stated Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council. "Britain always has been, is now, and will be our eternal enemy. At least until such time as their arrogant, despicably dank island sinks into the abyss of the sea from a wave triggered by a cutting-edge Russian weapons system," said Medvedev on his Telegram channel.
This comes against the backdrop of the recent UK sanctions on five people connected to the investigation against imprisoned journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza, who has been labelled as a foreign agent in Russia. "‘Let it be,’ as the Beatles used to sing," he added. Ironically, Medvedev remarked on the British dignitaries' outstanding sense of self-exceptionalism. He also discussed the remarks made by the British ambassador regarding the Kara-Murza issue, reported TASS.
21 April 2023 - Ukraine-Russia war: Russia 'will send disgustingly damp Britain into the abyss'
"Britain was, is and will be our eternal enemy,” Mr Medvedev wrote on Telegram.
“In any case, soon enough their impudent and disgustingly damp island will be sent into the abyss of the sea by waves created by the latest Russian weapons system.”
He is likely referring to the 200-tonne nuclear missile, known as “Satan II”.
Putin has previously boasted the missile, officially known as Sarmat, would "give thought to those who are trying to threaten Russia". Military analysts have said it could reach London in as little as 13 minutes if it was based in Russia's extreme west.
In his rambling message, Mr Medvedev, who once hosted US President Barack Obama in Moscow, said that Britain had become so “outdated” that he couldn’t even remember Rishi Sunak's name.
25 April 2023 - Putin ally: We are probably on the verge of a new world war
Rising nuclear tensions could lead to a conflict that engulfs the world, according to former Russian President Dimitry Medvedev.
“The world is sick and quite probably is on the verge of a new world war,” Medvedev, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the deputy chairman of Russia’s security council, told a conference in Moscow on Tuesday.
“We are standing at a historical frontier: Ahead is probably the most dangerous, unpredictable and, at the same time, important decade since the end of World War II,” Putin said at a conference in October.
X. Resurrection of NordStream & Effectiveness of sanctions
16 May 2023 - EU balks at adding Russian gas pipeline ban to sanctions package
The G7 gambit is designed to “curb attempts to resurrect Nord Stream,” above all to quell voices in Germany and any other countries where there “may be companies and consumers who may be interested in resuming imports” of Russian pipeline gas one day, said Aura Sabadus, a senior analyst at the market intelligence firm ICIS.
16 May 2023 - 11th package of EU sanctions: Focusing on circumvention
19 May 2023 - Borrell: Some clarifications on the circumvention of EU sanctions against Russia
When we talk about ‘sanctions’ we actually refer to ‘restrictive measures’, which is the correct legal term.
They are at the heart of our strategy to pressure Russia to end its war against Ukraine.
[M: based on further reading "the heart of strategy" has failed]
The EU’s measures have no extraterritorial effect, meaning they only apply to European entities.
[M: yet another "measures" are implemented agains 3rd party outside EU companies which deal with both Russia and EU]
But we see that sometimes they are being circumvented, undermining their effectiveness.
[M: Hardly any legal circumvention, all purely matter of jurisdiction]
And so the debate has moved to what we should do about it. Often, the answer lies at home.
[M: Mr Borrell admits that only EU countries could be legally efected by these measures]
As EU, we don’t want to buy Russia energy exports, because we don’t want to finance its war against Ukraine.
[M: These measures failed as these are not UN sanctions. The reality oil and gas markets are zero sum type, if buyer A does not buy then buyer B buys, any new "measures" bring inefficiency in markets, the situation becomes pareto-inefficient, the overall cost increases. ]
These are our decisions that are binding EU economic operators. Even if we would like other countries to do the same, we cannot force them, because our ‘sanctions’, are not extraterritorial.
Our restrictive measures have been effective overall... But in recent months we have seen an abnormal increase of third countries importing goods that are banned by the EU, including high-tech products. For example, EU exports of vehicles to Russia reportedly fell by 78% in 2022, while exports from the EU to Kazakhstan surged by 268%.
The figures are clear: India’s oil imports from Russia have gone from 1,7 million barrels per month in January 2022 to 63,3 million barrels per month in April 2023. Put differently, before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the share of Russian oil in India’s overall oil import stood at 0,2%. Last month, that share had risen to 36,4%.
[M: Clear policy failure on EU level]
The G7 price cap is aimed at reducing Russia’s oil revenues and, with that, the financial means of the Kremlin to finance its war machine
[M: Clear policy failure on G7 level. Economical theory and real market cases stipulate that the demand side, not supply, is destroyed as result of price caps.]
We in the EU don’t buy Russian oil, but we buy the diesel obtained by refining this Russian oil somewhere else.
[M: Doublespeak politics, reality is "we don’t buy Russian oil DIRECTLY"]
..some international companies are buying refinery products made from Russian oil and selling them on to Europe…It’s completely legal, but completely immoral.
[M: Costly lipstick politics about morality yet it hurts buyers foremost not the seller.]
24 May 2023 - Plenary session of the Eurasian Economic Forum
Vladimir Putin took part in the plenary session of the Eurasian Economic Forum.
PUTIN: "I would like to ask once again – who is to blame for the energy crisis in Europe? ... Who is to blame for what happened? The Nord Stream pipelines were blown up. Nord Stream-2 was not launched. Poland closed the Yamal-Europe gas route via its territory.
Did we do this? No, they did. There were two main gas pipelines through Ukraine. Ukraine closed one of them. We didn’t.
Incidentally, we are supplying Europe with gas via the second line while Ukraine is safely cashing the money for transit despite calling us the aggressor."
[M: Credit to COMBATE |
@upholdreality - link to original tweet here]
25 May 2023 - Russia summons Germany, Denmark, and Sweden over 'stalled' Nord Stream blast investigation
The Russian Foreign Ministry said Thursday it had summoned the ambassadors of Germany, Sweden, and Denmark to protest what it described as a “complete lack of results” over the investigations into the ruptured Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines.
25 May 2022 - PUTIN: "I would like to ask once again
– who is to blame for the energy crisis in Europe? ... Who is to blame for what happened? The Nord Stream pipelines were blown up. Nord Stream-2 was not launched. Poland closed the Yamal-Europe gas route via its territory. Did we do this? No, they did. There were two main gas pipelines through Ukraine. Ukraine closed one of them. We didn’t.
Incidentally, we are supplying Europe with gas via the second line while Ukraine is safely cashing the money for transit despite calling us the aggressor."
25 May 2022 - Russian defense chief Shoigu sees West waging undeclared war on Russia, Belarus
A Western-led undeclared war is being waged against Moscow and Minsk, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said at a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart, Viktor Khrenin, on Thursday.
"Today, we are being confronted by the collective West, which, in effect, is waging an undeclared war on our countries," Shoigu said.
According to him, NATO’s military activities "have been most aggressive of late."
"A number of measures to enhance the combat readiness of the [North Atlantic] Alliance’s Joint Armed Forces in Eastern Europe is currently being implemented. Extra troops and military infrastructure are being deployed there, and combat training and reconnaissance activities have intensified near the border of the [Russia-Belarus] Union State," Shoigu said.
British involvement in Ukrainian terrorist attacks inside Russia can’t be ruled out in overall relations
Regarding the possible severing of diplomatic relations with London, “this is obviously an extreme measure that can’t be ruled out when taking into account the totality of all factors,” the ministry warned.
26 May 2022 - Russian, Belarusian defence ministers sign on “Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons”
Western nations have basically been waging an undeclared war against Moscow and Minsk, according to Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, who was speaking on 25 May 2023 with his Belarusian colleague Viktor Khrenin. Sergei Shoigu stated, ‘Today we are facing the collective West, which is virtually waging war against our countries’.
He also noted that Western nations who provide Ukraine with military assistance are escalating the conflict and prolonging it.
‘Everything is being done to prolong and escalate the armed conflict in Ukraine, which is being supported militarily in every possible way,’ Sergei Shoigu said...
‘As part of the Belarus-Russia unified regional air defence system in the Republic of Belarus, Russian aviation and air defense assets are on alert,’ said Sergei Shoigu.
"Over the years, presidents of Ukraine made promises to turn the country into a new France or a new Switzerland. Zelensky went further than anyone and turned the country into a new Afghanistan, to the delight of the Anglo-Saxons and defense companies."
X. The WARNING to Anlo Saxons
31 May 2023 - Elena Panina, director of the Institute of Russian Strategic Studies (via Twitter verified account Victor vicktop55, @vicktop55)
"It's time to ask a question. How did it turn out that for the 16th month of the SMO we are seriously discussing that the Anglo-Saxons can transfer tactical nuclear weapons to Kiev, which will be used in the new territories of Russia?
By the way, why only in new regions? Moreover, for example, Moscow has already come under attack from Ukrainian drones. Colleagues from Telestream are interested in whether Russia will decide on a pre-emptive strike on Britain in order to "show London that bullish play is not only the prerogative of the Anglo-Saxons."
Hard to say. Our practical actions so far indicate otherwise. The British supplied Kyiv with tank shells with depleted uranium cores, then they supplied long-range Storm Shadow missiles. Prior to that, they, together with the Americans and Norwegians, staged a diversion on the Nord Streams.
In response, we did not even take a simple and logical step - we did not lower the level of diplomatic presence in relations with Britain: we did not expel their ambassador from Moscow and did not recall our own from London.
On the other hand, perhaps we are waiting for the moment when the Anglo-Saxons will do something to immediately take them all out of the game?
In any case, the transition to such a level of escalation as a pre-emptive strike against Britain, whether with conventional or nuclear weapons, is the responsibility of the Supreme Command. It is very difficult to predict what the President of the Russian Federation will do. He knows how to surprise.
As far as we are concerned, there is no point in teasing a nuclear-armed country with a conventional strike. It is necessary to demolish Foggy Albion immediately and completely, including with the help of strategic nuclear forces".
31 May 2023 - Dmitry Medvedev @MedvedevRussiaE
The UK’s Foreign Secretary Cleverly has stated that Ukraine “has the legitimate right to … project force beyond its borders to undermine Russia’s ability to project force into Ukraine itself.” According to him, legitimate military targets beyond Ukraine’s border are part of its self-defence.
The goofy officials of the UK, our eternal enemy, should remember that within the framework of the universally accepted international law which regulates modern warfare, including the Hague and Geneva Conventions with their additional protocols, their state can also be qualified as being at war.
Today, the UK acts as Ukraine’s ally providing it with military aid in the form of equipment and specialists, i.e., de facto is leading an undeclared war against Russia. That being the case, any of its public officials (either military, or civil, who facilitate the war) can be considered as a legitimate military target.
[M: UK’s Foreign Secretary Cleverly is my prime suspect, appear on these posts as integral actor here and here and here]
31 May 2023 - Vladimir Putin's Close Ally Dmitry Medvedev Says 'Legitimate' To Assassinate Brits As UK Launched 'Undeclared War' Against Moscow; Calls Britain 'Eternal Enemy'
Vladimir Putin's Close Ally Dmitry Medvedev Says 'Legitimate' To Assassinate Brits As UK Launched 'Undeclared War' Against Moscow; Calls Britain 'Eternal Enemy'
[M: The definition of the #Nordstream affair is uncertain - under certain conditions it could be seed as an armed attack against another state and thus a reason for declaring a war]
XI. ONE COUNTRY IS BEING SHIELDED
4 July 2023 - Russia on the situation in Nord Stream 1 &2 Pipelines - United Nations Security Council
...investigations by SWE, GER and DK are not moving forward in fact what we see is just moving around in cycles, some kind of pretention that Russia is aware of what is happening, which is totally false.... we will seek international investigation and punishment of those who are behind this crime. We think this is absolutely inadmissible that perpetrators of the such hideous crime which directly effects international peace and security and not yet identified and prosecuted...
Because the truth matters.
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