{"id":7310,"date":"2021-05-10T01:15:55","date_gmt":"2021-05-10T05:15:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/?p=7310"},"modified":"2021-12-05T13:43:40","modified_gmt":"2021-12-05T18:43:40","slug":"deep-beneath-the-baltic-sea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/2021\/05\/10\/deep-beneath-the-baltic-sea\/","title":{"rendered":"Deep Beneath the Baltic Sea"},"content":{"rendered":"

From Time to Time<\/strong> <\/a><\/h1>\n

<\/h3>\n

History does not repeat itself,
\nBut it certainly likes to rhyme.<\/h3>\n

<\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

Deep Beneath the Baltic Sea:<\/h1>\n

<\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

From Zhukov\u2019s Friendship with Eisenhower<\/h1>\n

<\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

to Illegal American Extraterritoriality<\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

by Anna Rosmus<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unable to reach a security agreement with Britain and France against National Socialist Germany after the Munich Conference from September 1938, Soviets faced the likelihood of German military expansion in Eastern Europe by themselves. Hoping to gain time to increase the Soviet military, on August 23, 1939, Molotov and Ribbentrop signed a non-aggression pact. During the subsequent invasion of Poland, Germans stunned the world with their Blitzkrieg. <\/em>On June 22, 1941, Germans invaded of the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n

On January 12, 1945, Marshal Ivan Konev’s 1st Ukrainian Front started an offensive toward Berlin. Two days later, the 1st Belorussian Front under Marshal Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov followed. Within days, the Eastern front fell apart, and Americans held their breath when Zhukov maneuvered his forces across the Odra River, some 40 miles from Berlin. After German top brass in Berlin surrendered to him on May 8, 1945, Zhukov became the first commander of the Soviet Occupation Zone in Germany.<\/p>\n

Within hours of the Allied victory, American and Soviet soldiers of every rank began to party, cordially celebrating and ceremonially decorating each other.[1]<\/sup><\/a> Kenneth W. Moeller from 11th<\/sup> Armored Division Headquarters, for example, wrote in Memories: The European Theater of Operations 1944-45<\/em>:<\/p>\n

\n

The 7th<\/sup> Parachute Guards Division was an elite unit \u2014 that is what the Guards means. It is the equivalent of our Presidential Unit Citation. It means the Unit has been to hell and back. They were Ukrainians. [\u2026] We sat down for lunch. We toasted Stalin, we toasted President Truman, we toasted Marshal Zhukov, we toasted General Eisenhower. Things got pretty merry. General Dager presented General Drechkin and each of his staff with a Colt .45 pistol.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Whether it was the Soviet Order \u201cFor Merit to the Fatherland\u201d or a Medal for Valor, <\/em>\u201cby command of General Eisenhower\u201d or subordinate units, American soldiers were not only granted permission to accept and to wear their Soviet decorations, but they had practical benefits as well.[2]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

That the Supreme Allied Commander in the West admired Marshal Zhukov was no secret.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/td>\n\"\"<\/a>SC 207756 Shaef, Frankfurt, on June, 10, 1945: General Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander, with Marshal of the Soviet Union Zhukov, and interpreter Lieutenant Colonel O. Pantuhoff. Zhukov remained the most decorated general in the history of both Russia and the Soviet Union. Photo by Lieutenant Moore<\/span><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

On June 10, 1945, Zhukov was appointed Military Governor of the Soviet Occupation Zone in Germany. That day, he traveled all the way to Frankfurt am Main, to present Eisenhower with the Order of Victory, the highest possible Soviet military decoration. On June 25, 1945, when Time Magazine <\/em>printed a bold \u201cSalute to General Ike\u201d, readers learned that it was \u201cglittering with thousands of dollars’ worth of diamonds and rubies\u201d. Both men quickly became more than brothers-in-arms. In Strictly Personal<\/em>, Eisenhower\u2019s son, a military historian, reminisced about traveling with them.[3]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Shortly thereafter, however, the Cold War set in, destroying most of this once vital Alliance. Germans and the Soviets returned to business as usual. By 1973, a transcontinental gas transport system from Western Siberia to Western Europe was established. It was so successful that five years later, Soviets planned to expand it with a 2,800-mile long trans-Siberian pipeline. Originating in the Urengoy gas fields, it crosses the Ural Carpathian Mountains and more than 600 rivers.[4]<\/sup><\/a> In July 1981, Deutsche Bank, other German banks, and the AKA Ausfuhrkredit GmbH pledged 3.4 billion Deutsche Mark in credits. AEG-Telefunken, Mannesmann, and others signed construction deals. Under President Ronald Reagan, however, a transatlantic battle<\/a> began.[5]<\/sup><\/a> The foreign ministers of the European Economic Community issued a formal note of protest, calling the 1982 US-sanctions illegal.[6]<\/sup><\/a> To this day, that route continues to deliver approximately 40 billion cubic meters gas a year.<\/p>\n

Britain, Norway, and the Netherlands, Western and Northern Europe\u2019s biggest producers of natural gas, primarily rely on resources from the North Sea. In 2016, that amount covered merely one third of the union\u2019s needs, yet over the next few decades, that gas might be depleted.<\/p>\n

Nord Stream, another pipeline beneath the Baltic Sea between Russia and Germany, has operated since 2011. To continue delivering gas via the Black Sea as well, Russia extended its contract with Ukraine until 2024. Today, Russia controls nearly 40% of the EU gas market, compared to 80% in 1990.<\/p>\n

While Germany is Russia\u2019s biggest market, Green politicians and others dread burning more fossil fuels. To replace coal and nuclear energy while becoming carbon-neutral in the long run, Europe needs more gas. Piping in additional supplies along the shortest route is efficient. It is no surprise that the German government proposed Nord Stream 2, a parallel, 760-mile-long line beneath the Baltic Sea. The $11 billion international project could add up to 55 billion cubic meters of natural gas each year, thus roughly doubling Russia\u2019s export volume on that route.<\/p>\n

And once again, not everybody in the transatlantic alliance is happy about that. Like 30 years earlier, some opponents fear Russia\u2019s increased geopolitical options. Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, on NATO\u2019s eastern border, oppose Nord Stream 2 because two pipelines through the Baltic Sea might enable Russia to cut them out of billions in transit fees for the existing line through the Black Sea.<\/p>\n

The United States, however, seems intent on repeating history from the 1980s. Donald Trump was not the only one who tried to increase US-access to a profitable market with reliably growing demands. Selling Europe more American liquefied natural gas (LNG) still seems worth fighting for \u2013 by all means. After various 2016 warnings,[7]<\/sup><\/a> Austria\u2019s Chancellor Christian Kern and Germany’s Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel pointed out that \u201cEurope’s energy supply is a matter for Europe, and not for the United States of America.\u201d[8]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

In 2018, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson announced US opposition to the pipeline. In December 2019, the U.S. Congress hurled sanctions at a Swiss company for supplying ships that lower Nord Stream 2 pipes into the Baltic Sea. While this delayed the project, Russia simply sent another vessel instead, and in the meantime, the pipeline is almost complete.[9]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Whereas German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas reiterated in a tweet that \u201cEuropean energy policy is decided in Europe, not in the United States,\u201d Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that the U.S. Congress \u201cis literally overwhelmed with the desire to do everything to destroy\u201d Russian-U.S. relations.[10]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Undeterred, in the summer of 2020, a bipartisan group of US-Senators met to widen sanctions to prevent Nord Stream 2. According to those senators, individuals as well as companies from multiple nations can be targeted for lawful business deals such as underwriting insurance for that pipeline or providing port services. Unsurprisingly, the German government set out to make the EU retaliate.<\/p>\n

On July 3, 2020, ANDREAS KLUTH, a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion<\/em>, opened his article with these words:<\/p>\n

\n

U.S. President Donald Trump is furious at Germany for many reasons, not all of them fathomable. In phone conversations with Angela Merkel, he\u2019s allegedly called the German chancellor \u201cstupid\u201d and denigrated her in \u201cnear-sadistic\u201d tones. Though this be madness, as the Bard might say, there is\u2014on rare occasions\u2014method in it. One such case is Nord Stream 2.[11]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

When Germans arrived for the NATO summit in Brussels, they might have anticipated another Trump insult. On July 11, RICK NOACK reported in the Washington Post,<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Germany, as far as I\u2019m concerned, is captive to Russia because it\u2019s getting so much of its energy from Russia,\u201d Trump told NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking on camera. \u201cWe have to talk about the billions and billions of dollars that\u2019s being paid to the country we\u2019re supposed to be protecting you against.\u201d[12]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

On January 1, 2021, the annual U.S. defense policy bill passed by Congress included sanctions for companies that insured the pipeline or worked on it. On January 19, Trump\u2019s last full day in office, his administration sanctioned a single Russian ship for laying pipe.<\/p>\n

Although Trump may be gone, it remains to be seen whether America remains hostile towards Nord Stream 2, and thus a critical ally. On February 16, 2021 a Bloomberg<\/em> article was headlined, \u201cGermany Seeks Deal With Biden on Controversial Russian Pipeline.\u201d[13]<\/sup><\/a> It quoted Richard Morningstar, founding chairman of the Atlantic Council\u2019s Global Energy Center and Former U.S. Ambassador to the European Union: \u201cIt won\u2019t be easy to convince the U.S. to back off of sanctions,\u201d but \u201cBiden\u2019s team is sensitive to the outcry over extraterritorial sanctions and are looking at alternatives, according to a person close to the matter.\u201d<\/p>\n

On March 18, 2021, DANIEL BENJAMIN, president of the American Academy and coordinator for counterterrorism at the State Department 2009-2012, wondered in Politico<\/em>:<\/p>\n

\n

The Nord Stream 2 fight has everything: Russian tentacles, an irate Congress and billions of dollars at stake for our closest allies. Can the Biden administration avoid a train wreck? [\u2026] whatever damage a new round of sanctions implementation will inflict on Russia will be relatively minor compared to the harm to the U.S.-German bilateral relationship at a genuinely critical moment. Washington is looking to Europe\u2014with Germany in the lead\u2014to craft complementary policies to manage an emboldened China. [\u2026] Breathing new life into NATO, revitalizing the Iran nuclear deal and, ironically, managing Vladimir Putin are other areas where German support will be essential.\u201d[14]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Anthony J. Blinken, now Secretary of State, seems to be stalling for time.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Footnotes<\/strong><\/p>\n

[1]<\/sup><\/a> See: Rosmus, Anna: Valhalla Finale<\/em>, Dorfmeister, Tittling 2009, pp. 153-190; Rosmus, Anna: Ragnar\u00f6k<\/em>, Dorfmeister, Tittling 2010, pp. 403-437; Rosmus, Anna: Allied Encounters, Spring and Summer 1945<\/em>, Kindle Edition 2012;<\/p>\n

[2]<\/sup><\/a> On August 8, 1945, for instance, 1st <\/sup>Lieutenant Charles B. Amyx contacted the Commanding General at Headquarters US Forces in the European Theater, to find out \u201cwhether or not these awards entitle recipients to combat credit points.\u201d Lieutenant Colonel A. H. Corley confirmed that the recipients, all assigned to Military Intelligence Service<\/em>, were \u201centitled to five points\u201d which sped up their military discharge.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/sup><\/a> Eisenhower, John S. D.: Strictly Personal, Doubleday, 1974<\/p>\n

[4]<\/sup><\/a> For details see: Afzal, Amina, 2004: https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20090119235743\/http:\/\/issi.org.pk\/journal\/2004_files\/no_3\/article\/5a.htm<\/p>\n

[5]<\/sup><\/a> Anthony J. Blinken, then a Harvard student, penned his undergraduate thesis about that dispute, and later wrote a book, Ally Versus Ally: America, Europe, and the Siberian Pipeline Crisis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/sup><\/a> Lee, Jae-Seung, Connolly, Daniel: \u201cPipeline Politics between Europe and Russia: A Historical Review from the Cold War to the Post-Cold War\u201d<\/a> in: The Korean Journal of International Studies <\/em>14-1, April 2016, pp. 105-29<\/p>\n

[7]<\/sup><\/a> A German international lawyer stated, \u201cYou won\u2019t find a single reputable scholar here or anywhere [outside the U.S.] who thinks secondary sanctions are legal under international law.\u201d Even Treasury Secretary Jack Lew warned that such sanctions \u201care viewed, even by some of our closest allies as extra-territorial attempts to apply U.S. foreign policy to the rest of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

[8]<\/sup><\/a> “Germany, Austria Slam US Sanctions Against Russia<\/a>” in: U.S. News from <\/em>June 15, 2017<\/p>\n

[9]<\/sup><\/a> According to the Danish Maritime Authority, work is to be largely completed by the end of April 2021.<\/p>\n

[10]<\/sup><\/a> “Ukraine and Russia look to strike new gas deal amid US sanctions threat<\/a>” in: CNBC<\/em> from December 16, 2019.<\/p>\n

[11]<\/sup><\/a> For details see: \u201cNord Stream 2 Gas Pipeline Could Sever U.S., Germany Ties – Bloomberg\u201d<\/p>\n

[12]<\/sup><\/a> For details see: \u201cThe Russian pipeline to Germany that Trump is so mad about, explained – The Washington Post\u201d<\/p>\n

[13]<\/sup><\/a> For details see: Dezem, Vanessa, Flatley, Daniel, Jennen, Birgit in: Bloomberg News<\/em>;<\/p>\n

[14]<\/sup><\/a> How One European Pipeline Is Derailing Biden\u2019s \u2018America Is Back\u2019 Promise – POLITICO<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From Time to Time History does not repeat itself, But it certainly likes to rhyme.   Deep Beneath the Baltic Sea:   From Zhukov\u2019s Friendship with Eisenhower   to Illegal American Extraterritoriality     by Anna Rosmus   Unable to reach a security agreement with Britain and France against National Socialist Germany after the Munich […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4340,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[320194],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7310","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-from-time-to-time"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7310","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4340"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7310"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7310\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7310"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7310"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/glossen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7310"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}