Word: russia
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...Russia's decision to choke off natural gas supplies to a shivering Western Europe couldn't have come at a worse moment - and that's just as Moscow would have it. As icy temperatures chill European households normally heated by Russian gas, a diplomatic race is underway to resolve the Russo-Ukraine dispute behind the cut. But Moscow seems in no hurry...
...Wednesday marked the second straight day that many European nations received but a trickle of Russian gas pumped via Ukrainian pipelines. Ukraine is pivotal to Europe's gas supply; about 80% of Russian gas normally flows through Ukraine, and Russia provides 25% of Europe's gas. The latest cuts are the result of a dispute between Russia and Ukraine over the price Ukraine should pay for gas. Russian energy monopoly Gazprom says the per-unit price of $179 that Ukraine pays is a subsidized relic from the Cold War-era and that it is no longer offset by Ukrainian pumping...
...interruptions were also felt in Slovakia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic, where deliveries from Russia dropped 70% or more. France and Italy also said that Russian gas flows were down 70% to 90%, though like most West European nations, both have larger reserves and are less dependent on Russian supplies than central and East European states...
...Gazprom officials are set to hold talks in Moscow on Thursday, but a solution is far from guaranteed. Russian leader Vladimir Putin has a history of exploiting his nation's vast energy supplies as a political weapon. The dive in energy prices over the past six months has hurt Russia, but it has not killed Moscow's desire to be a regional player. "With both energy markets tanking and Russia's economy hit extremely hard by the global recession, Putin probably feels he has much to gain by trying to jack up gas prices and [get] badly needed revenues flowing...
...Liberti says Putin's use of energy as a political tool - and his recent defiance of Europe and the rest of the world in Russia's military clash with Georgia - may signal that the Russian leader believes he risks little more than short-term trouble in making internationally unpopular moves that serve his interests. Liberti also suggests that the winter freeze and the assumption of the E.U. presidency by the Czech Republic, an ex-Soviet satellite, may have added to Putin's motivations. "Putin is reminding Europe [that] Russia's a force to be reckoned with, and that its position...