Energy in the service of the foreign policy of the Russian Federation

The article deals with the role occupied by energy resources in the international policy of the Russian Federation. In the first part of the article there is a discussion of the general historical background. This is followed by a detailed description of the development of the energy infrastructure built during the existence of the USSR. This is followed by a description of situations in which Moscow has used energy resources to influence policies of third countries. The last part of the article deals with the recently completed and further constructed energy infrastructure.