Explosions at three different locations have cut off gas supplies and 25% of electricity supplies to two former Soviet Block countries. The leader of
Georgia blames Moscow for sabotaging their own pipelines and emphasises the unreliability of Russia as a supplier.
Russia blamed for 'gas sabotage'
BBC News
Sunday, 22 January 2006
Georgia's president has accused Moscow of serious acts of "sabotage" after gas blasts on Russian pipelines cut off supplies to Georgia and Armenia.
An electricity transmission line was also destroyed as Georgia experiences extremely cold weather.
Russian prosecutors have described the attacks as deliberate criminal acts.
Georgia has no gas reserves and was due to run out of gas on Sunday evening, correspondents say.
Relations between Georgia and Russia have been tense since Mr Saakashvili was swept to power by the so-called "Rose Revolution" in 2003, pledging to
lead his nation on a pro-Western course.
The two explosions occurred on the main branch and a reserve branch of the Mozdok-Tbilisi pipeline in the Russian border region of North Ossetia at
around 0300 local time (2400 GMT).
The electricity transmission line in Russia's southern region of Karachayevo-Cherkessiya - also near the Georgian border - was brought down by an
explosion just hours later.
Georgia is holding emergency talks aimed at securing supplies from Azerbaijan and Iran, but this could also take several days, said Georgian Deputy
Energy Minister Aleko Khetagurov.
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With the entire area being under the influence of an extreme cold snap there have been reports of even some European countries noticing a drop in
supplies from Russia (e.g.
Italy) and now we have two countries completely cut off.
So what do you think?
Russia is behind the sabotage as an excuse to protect it's own supplies? Rebels from neighbouring Chechnya wanting to cut a source of revenue for
Russia? Someone 'else' trying to paint Russia as an unreliable supplier for Europe and thus turn Europe against them?
Georgia is part of the "pro-western colour revolutions" rumoured to have been heavily influenced by US assets/interests in the area.
The energy wars continue.
.
[edit on 1/22/2006 by Gools]
They basically just said the accusations were completely false, and were being made on the
strength of political motives alone, rather than any kind of evidence. They also delivered a sort of thinly veiled threat, to the effect of "watch
what you say or you'll see what we can really do to make your life miserable." 
