Nord Stream-2 pipeline
© WikipediaNord Stream 2 pipeline
Andrey Kobolev, the CEO of Ukraine's national oil and gas company Naftogaz, is apparently irate that Kiev's hostile behavior towards their natural partners in Russia could bring consequences. In an interview with the BBC, Kobolev spoke against the development of the Nord Stream-2 pipeline, saying it will have a harmful impact on Ukraine and Europe. "We are trying to show to our European counterparts that it will not only negatively affect us, it will also have a negative effect on the whole of Central and Eastern Europe in terms of gas prices."

It appears Kobolev is backtracking from a statement he made to Ukrainian media just a few months ago saying Europe would be just fine without Russian gas. "There is a model that shows that even if Gazprom completely stops gas supplies to Europe, Europe will substitute them. There will be problems in Eastern Europe, but there still will be substitution," the Naftogaz CEO said.

Now that Ukraine is faced with the reality of losing close to $2 billion in transit fees once Nord Stream-2 goes operational, Kobolev is singing a different tune. Kiev not only has trouble dealing with reality, it also fails to understand that its unnatural and asinine alignment with the U.S. is at the root of its problems.

Meanwhile, the Nord Stream-2 project is moving forward and its managers are planning to submitting a request to the Swedish government for construction workers. "Nord Stream 2 is planning to submit a request for conducting construction works to the Swedish government in two weeks," a Nord Stream representative said.

The €10-billion project seeks to build a 1,200 kilometer pipeline under the Baltic Sea to transport 55 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia to European distribution markets.

The US has been waging economic warfare on Russia using unjustified sanctions and lowered oil prices in an attempt to cripple the Russian economy. The US has frequently used this type of covert warfare against countries to manufacture discontent against their leaders. The successful coup in Brazil is a recent notable example. Rousseff was blamed for a recent downturn in an otherwise rising economy, which in no small part was fallout from the same oil war against Russia. The Brazilian partnership with Russia via BRICS made Rousseff a target, and neither she nor the Brazilian people were sufficiently prepared against an economic-informational Western attack. Few nations are, in fact, which is what makes Putin and Russia so remarkable.

The Russian people are well aware of the US machinations that have created difficulties for their nation, and they also see the many efforts Putin is making to stabilize Russia. They place blame and admiration where it is deserved. Putin has used the crisis as an opportunity to develop a self-sufficient economy while also establishing global partnerships. This strategy has paid off, and even Western propaganda rags have had to acknowledge the recovery of the Russian economy. Now imagine the boost that will be provided once Nord Stream-2 is fully operational.

On the other hand, the U.S. does not have the self-sufficiency of Russia, has no true partners (only vassal states who do their bidding), is collapsing under record debt, nearing $20,000,000,000,000, and is suffering at the expense of its own absurd policies. The United States is not only failing miserable at 'isolating Russia', it is apparently willing to destroy itself in defeat.