GAS is flowing again from Russia to Ukraine, but blackouts have hit factories and homes. Ukraine’s prime minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, says Ukraine’s independence is compromised by its energy dependence on Russia. Mykhailo Gonchar of the Centre for Global Studies in Kiev claims that in its battle in Ukraine, Russia has opened an energy front where it has big advantages—thanks to Ukraine’s own failings.Until the 1970s Ukraine powered the Soviet Union. But since independence in 1991, inefficiency and falling production have left it reliant on Russia. The problems are crystallised in Naftogaz, a state-controlled gas giant with a bigger budget deficit …read more
Source: The Economist
