S8 Ep608: 13. Anatol Lieven Headline: Seeking a Settlement in the Eurasia Crisis High energy prices are pressuring European nations like Belgium and Hungary to consider resuming trade with Russia. Lieven proposes a deal exchanging energy for compromises on the Donb
The John Batchelor Show
John Batchelor
4.5 • 2.8K Ratings
🗓️ 20 March 2026
⏱️ 12 minutes
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Summary
13. Anatol Lieven Headline: Seeking a Settlement in the Eurasia Crisis High energy prices are pressuring Europeannations like Belgium and Hungary to consider resuming trade with Russia. Lieven proposes a deal exchanging energy for compromises on the Donbass, though European leadership remains divided. (13)
1900 MOSCOW
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I'm John Bachelor. I welcome my colleague and friend, Anatole Levin, the director of the Eurasia program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, turning to the crisis in Eurasia. |
| 0:29.4 | The Financial Times headline tells the story. Gas prices surged 25 percent, and oil hits 115, 119, touching 120. It continues to move around as airstrikes |
| 0:43.5 | rattled markets. Donald Trump threatens massive attack on Iranian gas field if Tehran continues to |
| 0:51.5 | target Qatari facilities. |
| 0:59.7 | And until I come to you because the whole world is watching, especially the European Union, |
| 1:07.1 | especially Germany and Britain and France and Italy and Spain, watching very carefully. |
| 1:13.7 | And as of right now, there is no one answer to the crisis that I just pointed to with that surge of prices. I note that a gallon of diesel fuel as of yesterday in the south |
| 1:20.9 | of France costs $7.70 a gallon if you can find it. However, there is a way forward for another crisis you recommend that is in abeyance, |
| 1:33.4 | a crisis that is not at the edge of European authority, but right in the middle of it, |
| 1:38.2 | the Ukraine crisis. |
| 1:40.1 | And Russia is part of the way forward. |
| 1:43.1 | Now, I understand there is a formula that says the longer |
| 1:46.6 | the Middle Eastern wars, there are several of them simultaneous right now, Lebanon, Iran, and Gaza |
| 1:55.5 | are to name three. As long as the European wars continue and the price of gasoline hangs well above |
| 2:01.9 | 100, Russia benefits, especially closing the budget gap and sustaining itself through what was to be |
| 2:09.5 | a very difficult summer of prices. However, there is another way forward which is to seek |
| 2:16.0 | Russian assistance in the crisis in Europe and then to look |
| 2:20.4 | to a settlement in Ukraine. How would it work? How is Russia approached on this matter? And is there |
| 2:28.6 | already a conversation underway? Good evening to you. Hello, John. Yes, well, there is a conversation underway. I mean, |
| 2:36.8 | obviously in Hungary, where I was last week, but a couple of days ago, Bart de Vava, the Prime |
| 2:42.3 | Minister of Belgium, came out publicly saying, look, we need Russian oil and gas now. We have to have |
| 2:50.7 | it, given what's happening in the Middle East. |
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