Russia Leaves Thousands Without Heat in Moldova
Russia has left tens of thousands of people living in Moldova’s separatist region of Transnistria facing a bitter winter without gas or heat, Reuters reported on Monday.
- 51,000 households were left without gas amid freezing winter temperatures.
- 1,500 apartment buildings don’t have heating.
- Local authorities have reported rolling blackouts throughout the region.
Powerless: Transnistria is a Russia-backed breakaway enclave of the former Soviet nation of Moldova, near the Ukrainian border. It has relied on Russian gas for decades.
But Russian gas colossus Gazprom suspended energy exports to Moldova on January 1 after Ukraine declined to extend a transit contract with the company that let it send Russian gas across Ukraine and into Europe.
The Russians are well positioned to ease the crisis by delivering gas to Moldova through the TurkStream pipeline. But they are instead cutting off supplies and attempting to frame the West for Transnistria’s suffering.
“The Russians are clearly in the game not just to pressure Ukraine and Europe and Moldova,” former United States Ambassador William Hill told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. “But they’ve hung [Transnistria] out to dry, and this is really surprising everyone.”
Weaponized: Russian President Vladimir Putin is manufacturing an energy crisis to pressure Moldova to yield to his will. Blaming pro-Western Moldovans and various Western powers for the shortage, Putin is sowing division and instability in the region in an effort to bring more of Moldova under his power.
Energy is power, and Eastern Europe is largely at Russia’s mercy.
In his 2008 article “Russia’s Attack Signals Dangerous New Era,” Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry wrote:
Russia has Germany—and all of Europe—over a barrel. Cutting off part of the flow of gas to a country would wreak havoc on the economy!
As Mr. Flurry forecast years ago, Russia is weaponizing energy and wielding it aggressively. Read the full article to understand Russia’s transformation into an energy superpower and where it is leading.
