Shifting
relationships
A review
of energy
superpower
Russia and
its strained
relationship with
Europe, as told
by
Dr. Hooman
Peimani.
T
he fall of the Soviet Union brought about
a wide range of difficulties for all of its
succeeding states, but it certainly set Russia on
the track to emerge as an energy superpower,
with large and growing exports of oil, gas and coal, in
addition to nuclear technology and uranium. Lacking
a significant range of competitive non-energy export
items in the post-Soviet era, the loss of its secured
markets for such exports in the Soviet bloc made Russia
fall back on its vast energy assets as the means for
reviving its pre-1991 pre-eminent status.
The export-oriented energy sector has since
expanded as the single largest source of export revenue
for the Russian government, to promote Russia to the
ranks of the world’s first and second largest exporter
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