Putin's Gas

The New York Times:

Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, announced on Saturday that Russia is prepared to divert up to 45 billion cubic meters of gas a year from the Shtokman gas fields to Europe from its intended destination, the United States. The news, delivered at a trilateral meeting between Mr. Putin and Angela Merkel, the German chancellor and French president, Jacques Chirac, was a surprise, according to Russia’s major newspapers. Even the state-controlled gas company, Gazprom, which controls the Shtokman fields, was not informed of the proposal beforehand, according to an unnamed source close to the company quoted by Vedomosti.