Final Word from Tuesday, April 12, 2022

MEP Alexandr Vondra of ODS blames the Germans in part for the nearly 100% dependence of the CR on Russian natural gas. Because of Nord Stream, he said, the Germans killed the Nabucco pipeline from the Caspian Sea about a decade ago. Journalist Martin Wolf of the Financial Times blames the Germans for increasing their own vulnerability to a gas embargo by shutting down their nuclear plants and becoming excessively reliant on Russia. Columnist Paul Krugman of the New York Times blames the Germans for ignoring the risks of becoming dependent on Russian gas because of the short-term benefits of cheap energy. Maybe, he said, Germany will finally realize that refusing to shut off the gas makes it de facto complicit in mass murder in Ukraine. To Czech Foreign Min. Jan Lipavský, who supports an oil and gas ban, values are more important than prosperity. Whether Czechs agree or not, they will likely share soon in the expiation of Germans for their collective gas guilt. [ Czech Republic Azerbaijan sanctions ]