NYTimes: America's Natural Gas Lever

The news that the Obama administration wants to use America’s new natural gas abundance as a lever against Russia offers a chance to change a long-term dynamic in Europe, which allows an undemocratic petrostate to dictate terms to our closest allies.

This won’t happen overnight, and it won’t be of use in the current crisis. But by accelerating the process now, we can give our allies freedom to respond to future aggressions like the one in Crimea. And we will increase our capacity to shape coalitions that manage a resurgent and aggressive Russia.

Europe imports 15 billion cubic feet of gas per day from Russia. This dependency has emboldened and financed the Russian government while hampering Europe’s ability to respond. America faced this dilemma six years ago as it struggled to confront Russian aggression in Georgia. But that was before horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing unleashed America’s shale gas.  MORE