It’s Business As Usual Between Europe and Russia

The Gazprom logo is seen on the side of the Russian energy giant's headquarters in Moscow, Russia, February 24. At the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok September 3 to 5, Gazprom clinched three major deals with some of Europe’s biggest energy companies. MAXIM ZMEYEV/REUTERS

Judy Dempsey, Newsweek: Forget Ukraine. It’s Business As Usual Between Europe and Russia

It was just like the old days before the European Union imposed sanctions on Russia in 2014. At the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostokc Gazprom clinched three major deals with some of Europe’s biggest energy companies.

One of the most important was the revival of a lucrative asset swap between the Russian energy giant and Wintershall, the energy division of BASF, a German chemical company. BASF had abandoned that swap arrangement in December 2014 because of the geopolitical consequences of Russia’s invasion of eastern Ukraine and its annexation of Crimea.

WNU Editor: Its always about the money.