Thursday, March 6, 2014

New York Times Editorial, "Natural Gas as a Diplomatic Tool": Ignorance of Israeli Natural Gas Reserves

In an editorial entitled "Natural Gas as a Diplomatic Tool" (http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/07/opinion/natural-gas-as-a-diplomatic-tool.html?hpw&rref=opinion&_r=0), The New York Times tells us that the US should punish Putin for his incursion into the Ukraine by exporting natural gas to Europe at the expense of Russia. The Times writes:

"Increasing natural gas exports could serve American foreign-policy interests in Europe, which gets about 30 percent of its gas from Russia. Countries like Germany and Ukraine are particularly vulnerable to supply disruptions that are politically driven."

However, the Times editorial also acknowledges that "the effects of such exports would likely be modest and wouldn’t be realized for several years."

But wait! Displaying customary ignorance, the Times fails to take into account Israel's growing natural gas reserves discovered off its Mediterranean coast, currently consisting of some 400 billion cu.m. of proven reserves that can be exported. Indeed, Europe imported some 167 billion cu.m. of natural gas from Russia in 2013, and Israeli reserves can only make a partial dent in this Russian cartel. Nonetheless, by helping to grow Israeli reserves and exports while concurrently increasing US exports, the Obama administration can certainly place meaningful pressure on Putin.

But wait again! The Obama administration would have us believe that there has not been a renewal of the Cold War. Moreover, the Obama administration and its semi-official mouthpiece, i.e. The New York Times (see: http://jgcaesarea.blogspot.co.il/2014/03/new-york-times-editorial-israels-choice.html), are busy castigating long-term ally Israel for alleged intransigence involving John Kerry's ridiculous Israeli-Palestinian peace initiative.

Yes, Obama's foreign policy is characterized by ignorance and  impotence, and his unimaginative little helpers on the editorial board of The New York Times are of little use to him, except for boosting his deflated ego.

No comments:

Post a Comment