Nothing symbolises the new willingness of Vladimir Putin's Russia to use energy as a political weapon so much as the incredible rise of its state-owned gas giant Gazprom over the last 18 months. Since January 2006, when Russia briefly cut supplies to Ukraine in a spat over pricing, the EU has attempted to produce a gas diversification strategy that reduces its dependence on Russian oil. And as Derek Brower writes in this month's issue, this is largely because it has been utterly outfoxed by Gazprom. You can discuss this article in the comments box below.
