South Stream Proj, A “Bluff” With No Chances To Succeed - Analyst

Socor added that South Stream costs, estimated at 19-24 billion USD, are also "absurd", mentioning a statement of Russian President Dimitri Medvedev in this respect.

In the analyst’s opinion, Russia is only using South Stream to block the accomplishment of Nabucco project, supported by the USA and the EU, as well as the entire south-European corridor. At the same time, Russia must declare it supports Nabucco project, in order to get support for its projects North Stream and South Stream.

Asked about Romania’s chances to be included by Russia in South Stream project, Socor said that the statements of Russian Prime Minister Vlamimir Putin, who had previously invited Romania to join the project, were only aimed at mocking the country.

Nabucco, linking Turkey to Central Europe via Romania, aims at supplying natural gas from the Caspian Sea to Central Europe via Turkey and Romania, bypassing Russia.

South Stream, developed by Italian energy company Eni and Russia’s Gazprom, is aimed to transport Russian natural gas to Italy and Greece, transiting several states like Bulgaria, Serbia, and Hungary.

Vladimir Socor, born in Bucharest, is a US citizen and currently lives in Germany. He is an analyst specialized in politics, diplomacy and energy issues in the former Soviet republics and the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States).

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