The Gas War: The Beginning

HIBAPRESS-RABAT- From “outer land”

The recent “gas war” between Russia and Ukraine is explained by an existential rivalry between two sister nations whose economies, complementary and competing, are highly interdependent. A partly common story, but delivered from two contradictory versions. A painful civilizational divorce. To quote the first Ukrainian president, Leonid Kravchuk, “Russia is the key problem of Ukraine.”

Conversely, the rebirth of Russia as an imperial power would be incompatible with the existence of an independent Ukraine.

Here, the energy dimension is traditionally present. In August 1993, for example, Russia reduced its gas deliveries to Ukraine by 50% on the eve of the decisive Yeltsin-Kravchuk meeting on the future of the Black Sea Fleet, with Russia claiming the whole thing while Ukraine insisted on sharing it.

This first “gas war” allowed a transfer under Russian administration of all the buildings against a Ukrainian debt estimated at 2.5 billion dollars and which corresponded mainly to the energy bill. Kravchuk, accused by his public opinion of high treason, was nevertheless subsequently led to cancel this agreement which was to be renegotiated by his successor.

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