Here we are at the end of Week 126 of Putin’s War.
Last week was much less frenetic than the past month. The big story to keep an eye on is the ongoing squabble between Ukraine and Putin’s two overt allies in the EU, Slovakia’s Robert Fico and Hungary’s Viktor Orban.
Last week, Orban tried to insert himself into potential peace negotiations by visiting Kiev and Moscow, with a final stop in Beijing. Not only was Xi unenthusiastic, but the European Parliament made it clear that Orban was only speaking for himself, and the EU stripped Hungary of the traditional right of the country holding the presidency to host the annual meeting of EU foreign and defense ministers.
Both Slovakia and Hungary get about 70-80% of their oil from Russia through an EU agreement to waive sanctions. The hitch is that 100% of that Russian oil arrives via a pipeline that passes through Ukraine. Friday,…
