Gas flares from the Priobskoye oil field in Russia send smoke into the sky.Joseph Sywenkyj for The New York Times
From Asia Times:
The global economic crisis has prompted some observers to speculate that Russia has little choice but to abandon its international assertiveness in favor of re-engaging the West and diversifying its energy-dependent economy.
The Russian leadership, however, has shown little inclination to principally revise its international strategy and its petro component. The Kremlin assumes that the alternative to its energy-based strategy is a decline relative to existing and rising powers, which will lead to the degeneration of Russia into a geographically truncated, under-populated and resource-depleted nation that accepts political demands from others.
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