Business Insider: Russia Is Losing Control Over The European Gas Market

Oil isn't Russia's only problem. The energy exporter is losing its dominance over the European gas market. In the past there were two factors that kept Russia as the major gas powerhouse: European policies and cold winters.

But both of those things have changed - and Russia is starting to explore non-Western countries.

Back in 2009 the EU passed the Third Energy Package, which said that Russia can't both own and control pipelines on the EU territory. (Russia filed a lawsuit with the WTO against the EU over this in April 2014, after the first rounds of Western sanctions.)

Additionally, the EU has been putting taxpayers' money into new inter-connectors, so now if Russia decides to cut of supplies, the affected countries can still get gas from somewhere else, according to the Economist.
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