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world news Diahuebs 28 aPRiL 2022

EU nations accuse Russia of using natural gas as ‘blackmail’

(AP) — Polish and Bulgar- would lose with a complete said given a “choice between
ian leaders accused Mos- cutoff. freedom and dignity or gas,
cow of using natural gas the answer is clear, in favor of
to blackmail their coun- Russia, however, rejected the freedom and dignity.”
tries after Russia’s state- idea that it was using black-
controlled energy com- mail while warning it may “So we will go through this
pany stopped supplying halt gas supplies to other Eu- ordeal. It cannot be com-
them with gas Wednesday. ropean customers if they also pared to the hardship and
European Union lead- refuse to switch to paying in tribulations that the Ukrai-
ers echoed those com- rubles. nian people are currently suf-
ments and were holding fering,” Todorov added.
an emergency meeting on Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry
the Russian move. Peskov, argued that the Rus- The new Polish sanctions
sian demand to switch to against Russia, announced
The gas cutoff to Poland and paying for gas in rubles re- Tuesday, targeted 50 Russian
Bulgaria came after Russian sulted from Western actions oligarchs and companies, in-
President Vladimir Putin said that froze Russian hard cur- cluding Gazprom. Hours lat-
that “unfriendly” countries rency assets. He said those er, Poland said it had received pension of gas deliveries “a comply with the demand to
would need to start paying were effectively “stolen” by notice that Gazprom was gross violation of their con- pay in rubles.
for gas in rubles, Russia’s the West in an “unprecedent- cutting off its gas supplies tract” and “blackmail.” He
currency, which Bulgaria and ed unfriendly action.” for failing to pay in Russian vowed to defend the coun- Greece is ramping up its liq-
Poland refused to do. rubles. Poland’s gas company, try’s interests and “support uefied natural gas storage ca-
Polish Prime Minister Ma- PGNiG, said the gas sup- military-technical assistance pacity, and has contingency
Russian energy giant Gaz- teusz Morawiecki told Po- plies from the Yamal pipeline to Ukraine.” plans to switch several indus-
prom said in a statement land’s parliament that he stopped early Wednesday. try sectors from gas to die-
that it hadn’t received any thinks the suspension was In Bulgaria, the main con- sel as an emergency energy
payments from Poland and revenge for new sanctions Russian gas supplies to both sumers of gas are district source. It has also reversed a
Bulgaria since April 1 and against Russia that Warsaw Poland and Bulgaria already heating companies. Bul- program to reduce domestic
was suspending their deliver- imposed over Russia’s inva- were expected to end later garia’s energy minister said coal production.
ies starting Wednesday. And sion of Ukraine. Morawiecki this year anyway. his country can meet the
if those countries siphon called it an “attack on Po- needs of users for at least one If European nations decide
off Russian gas intended for land” and an example of “gas Poland relies on coal for 70% month. not to pay in rubles, Rus-
other European customers, imperialism” while vowing of its energy needs, with gas sia can sell its oil elsewhere,
Gazprom said deliveries to that Poland would not be only making up around 7% Russia’s move raised wider such as to India and China,
Europe will be reduced by cowed by the cutoff. He said of its energy mix. Several concerns that other coun- because oil primarily moves
that amount. the country was safe from an years ago, the country opened tries could be targeted next by ship.
energy crisis thanks to years its first terminal for lique- as Western countries increase
European Commission Pres- of efforts to secure gas from fied natural gas, or LNG, in their support for Ukraine It has less options with nat-
ident Ursula von der Leyen other countries. Swinoujscie, on the Baltic amid a war now in its third ural gas, because the pipe-
said the announcement by Sea coast. A pipeline from month. line network that carries gas
Gazprom “is yet another at- Some Poles and Bulgar- Norway is to due to start op- from Russia’s huge deposits
tempt by Russia to use gas as ians welcomed the cutoff for erating this year. The Greek government in northwestern Siberia’s Ya-
an instrument of blackmail.” moving them closer to inde- held an emergency meet- mal Peninsula does not con-
pendence from Russian en- Bulgarian Prime Minister ing Wednesday in Athens. nect with pipelines that run
Europe is not without some ergy. Kiril Petkov, whose govern- Greece’s next scheduled pay- to China. And Russia only
leverage in the dispute, since ment has been cutting many ment to Gazprom is due on has limited facilities to export
it pays Russia $400 million Dobrin Todorov, a resident of of the country’s old ties with May 25, and the government super-chilled liquefied gas by
a day for gas, money Putin Sofia, the Bulgarian capital, Russia, called Gazprom’s sus- must decide whether it will ship.

Myanmar court sentences Suu Kyi to 5 years for corruption

(AP) — A court in mili- she accepted gold and hun- to an active role in politics. viewed abroad as an icon of under the Anti-Corruption
tary-ruled Myanmar con- dreds of thousands of dollars that struggle, epitomized by Act is 15 years in prison and a
victed former leader Aung in a bribe from a top political The daughter of Aung San, her years under house arrest. fine for each charge. Convic-
San Suu Kyi of corruption colleague. Myanmar’s founding father, tions in the other cases could
and sentenced her to five Suu Kyi became a public fig- But she also has been heav- bring sentences of more than
years in prison Wednesday Her supporters and indepen- ure in 1988 during a failed ily criticized for showing 100 years in prison in total.
in the first of several cor- dent legal experts consider uprising against a previous deference to the military
ruption cases against her. Suu Kyi’s prosecution an un- military government when while ignoring and, at times, “These are trumped-up
just attempt to discredit her she helped found the Na- even defending rights viola- charges, politically motivat-
Suu Kyi, 76, who was ousted and legitimize the military’s tional League for Democracy tions — most notably a 2017 ed, to keep her inside prison
by an army takeover last year, seizure of power while pre- party. She spent 15 of the crackdown on Rohingya for such a long time and also
has denied the allegation that venting her from returning next 21 years under house ar- Muslims that rights groups are designed to keep her away
rest for leading a nonviolent have labeled genocide. While from the political limelight,”
struggle for democracy that she has disputed allegations said Wai Hnin Pwint Thon,
earned her the 1991 Nobel that army personnel killed a Geneva-based activist with
Peace Prize. When the army Rohingya civilians, torched the pro-democracy group
allowed an election in 2015, houses and raped women Burma Campaign UK. “And
her party won a landslide vic- and she remains immensely I’m sure the military is also
tory and she became the de popular at home, that stance thinking, by sentencing her,
facto head of state. Her party has tarnished her reputation they are grabbing the hope
won a greater majority in the abroad. away from people but, in
2020 polls. reality, it’s doing completely
She has already been sen- the opposite because people
Suu Kyi is widely revered tenced to six years’ imprison- haven’t lost hope. They are
at home for her role in the ment in other cases and faces still standing up against the
country’s pro-democracy 10 more corruption charges. military.”
movement — and was long The maximum punishment