Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko said yesterday the European Union would be next to feel the sharp edge of Russia's energy policies after Moscow cut oil flows to Belarus, disrupting supplies to Europe.
Lukashenko, branded by Washington as Europe's last dictator, has seen relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin collapse after a trade row over oil and gas prices.
Russia cut oil flows through the "Friendship" (Druzhba) pipeline for three days this month after Moscow said Belarus had been siphoning off oil illegally from the pipeline, which supplies Europe with a tenth of its oil.
"After this conflict, many people in Europe understand that today it is us but tomorrow it could be them," Lukashenko told reporters after voting in local elections, which are likely to cement his iron grip on power in the former Soviet state.
He said a new pipeline being built under the Baltic Sea to Germany was "the most foolish project in Russia's history".
A Kremlin source cited by Interfax news agency said Lukashenko's comments illustrated that the pipeline was needed.
The European Union is heavily dependent on energy from Russia, where Kremlin leaders see oil and gas as new instruments of geopolitical clout.
European leaders say they want to find alternative sources of energy but EU forecasts show that energy dependence on Russia will actually increase over the next decade. Last year, Russia briefly cut gas supplies to Europe via Ukraine.
Mr Lukashenko said Europe and the United States had supported Minsk in the crisis and that Belarus wanted to boost co-operation with Europe, which has criticised him for rigging elections.
"Both Europe and the United States acted properly in this situation: they offered us support and we will never forget that," he said. "We are prepared to co-operate with the devil himself to ensure our energy security." Belarus was until recently seen in the Kremlin as a loyal client state. But top Russian officials were livid at what they saw as Lukashenko's impertinence in arguing with their terms for oil and gas.
Putin now shows open dislike for Lukashenko.
Lukashenko warned Moscow that if Russia increased duties on Belarus goods, Belarus would demand payment for military services, bases and land under pipelines. Russia gets about $10 billion in free services from Belarus, he said.
"The introduction of duties on goods that are sensitive to Belarus scares us. If this happens, we will introduce duties on goods that are sensitive for Russia."
Lukashenko said Moscow wanted Belarus to surrender its sovereignty by pulling his country into Russia. "They are demanding we enter into Russia. I do not want to bury the independence and sovereignty of Belarus," he said. - ( Reuters )
