West, Russia tussle for gas corridors through the Balkans

Zagreb

THE West and Russia are battling for control of the transport of natural gas through the Balkans, as both sides pursue their geopolitical agenda in the volatile region.

Moscow has suffered a series of setbacks in the Balkans. Montenegro has joined Nato, while Macedonia's new social democratic government seems to be distancing itself from its previous pro-Russia stance.

But while the West can offer Balkan countries incentives such as the prospect of membership of the European Union (EU) or investment locally, Russia can play the energy card. Gas accounts for a quarter of the EU's energy consumption and in 2016, Russia's Gazprom supplied a third of Europe's gas.

And in the Balkans, dependence on gas looks set only to increase as coal-fired power stations shut down -…