Russia’s Cold Iron Grip Chokes Europe

On September 22, the UK Telegraph had the headline: "Putin’s iron grip on energy leaves Europe increasingly vulnerable”. The article began by noting that, "Vladimir Putin has his finger hovering over Europe’s light switch.” The article then goes on the explain that typically over the summer the Russian company Gazprom pumps a lot of gas into Europe’s storage facilities ready for winter. This has not happened this year. Russia is putting pressure on Europe to approve the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which the Telegraph states is, "finally ready to pump gas into Europe but is awaiting approval from German regulators.” The Telegraph notes that in regards to the pipeline Germany has been caught between Moscow and Washington. While the pipeline would facilitate bringing more gas into Europe in the future, it would not fill this years shortage and would ultimately make Europe even more reliant on Russian energy — which is why it has been opposed by Washington. Energy prices are soaring, which is threatening any pandemic recovery. If Europe has a cold winter there are difficult times ahead. The article concludes: "Winter is coming and a cold chill is set to descend on households and governments across Europe.”