Following Russia’s annexation of Crimea, the West carefully calibrated its ramp-up of sanctions to balance the need to turn the screws on Moscow without endangering European energy supplies. This targeting of Russia’s medium- and long-term energy projects pushed Russia to look elsewhere for financing for the development of its fledgling Yamal peninsula hydrocarbon projects.Last week, Russia began loading the first cargoes of liquified natural gas (LNG) from an export terminal located on the peninsula. This landmark shipment wouldn’t have been possible without significant foreign investment, and because of those aforementioned Western sanctions, that money came from China. Though France’s Total …read more
Source: The American Interest
