Russian government records reviewed for this article reveal for the first time the terms of recent deals between Firtash and Russias Gazprom, a giant gas company majority owned by the state. According to Russian customs documents detailing the trades, Gazprom sold more than 20 billion cubic metres of gas well below market prices to Firtash over the past four years - about four times more than the Russian government has publicly acknowledged. The price Firtash paid was so low, Reuters calculates, that companies he controlled made more than $3 billion on the arrangement. Over the same time period, other documents show, bankers close to Putin granted Firtash credit lines of up to $11 billion. That credit helped Firtash, who backed pro-Russian Viktor Yanukovichs successful 2010 bid to become Ukraines president, to buy a dominant position in the countrys chemical and fertiliser industry and expand his influence. The Firtash story is more than one mans grab for riches. It demonstrates how Putin uses Russian state assets to create streams of cash for political allies, and how he exported this model to Ukraine in an attempt to dominate his neighbour, which he sees as vital to Russias strategic interests. With the help of Firtash, Yanukovich won power and went on to rule Ukraine for four years. The relationship had great geopolitical value for Putin: Yanukovich ended up steering the nation of more than 44 million away from the Wests orbit and towards Moscows until he was overthrown in February.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Nov 2014 00:26:37 +0000
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