Putin is worried about the outcome of the 2018 November elections in the US.

In February of 2015 Angela Merkel, then striding the international stage as the powerful leader of the EU, stated in Budapest that,

"Hungary, like other countries, including Germany, has a qualitatively dependence on Russian energy supplies. In this respect we want accountability ... fairness, in trade too obviously .... and reliability. We will concentrate our efforts on this together. But at the same time, in European politics, we must make sure that we diversify our energy resources ..." (UT : 3 February, 2015) (my emphasis)

That was in 2015.

Today Angela Merkel has dramatically changed her tune, thanks to the tight symbiotic business relationship between German industry and Putin in the building, and near completion, of Nord Stream 2.

As recently stated (October 8, 2018) by a German government spokeswoman,

“We get gas from various countries - from Russia, but also from Britain, Norway and the Netherlands, and Germany’s gas needs will grow in coming years, so Nord Stream 2 is a commercial project that the government regards as sensible,” she told a regular news conference." (Reuters : October 8, 2018) (my emphasis)

As now reported by UNIAN,

"All works on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in German territorial waters are scheduled to be completed by the end of this year." (UNIAN : 7 Oct., 2018) (my emphasis)

And in a talk given at the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA),

"Dr Stefan Meister ... discusses German support of the Nord Stream 2 Natural Gas Pipeline and argues that the last meeting of Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Vladimir Putin in Meseberg in August (2018) was characterised by a more pragmatic approach in German-Russian relations with less emphasis on Ukraine." (YouTube (full video): 12 Sep 2018) (my emphasis)

Indeed, notwithstanding the threat of yet more US sanctions against EU companies, especially German companies, directly involved in the construction of Nord Sea 2, Nora Kamprath Buli (left) now reports that,

"Russia has signalled it would solely finance the EUR 9.5bn gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 should the US slap the project’s European partners with sanctions, German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported late on Friday." (Montel News : 24 Sept., 2018) (my emphasis)

And in a strange (predictable??) about-turn, UA112 reports that,

"The U.S. does not intend to impose sanctions on the Western companies which are involved in the construction of Nord Stream 2 as Trump said at the joint press-conference with Andrzej Duda, the President of Poland, Voice of America reports." (UA112 : 19 September, 2018) (my emphasis)

On the war front in Ukraine we learn that,

"Monitors of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine have spotted three surface-to-air missile systems in the Russian-occupied areas of Donbas." (UNIAN : 10 Oct., 2018) (my emphasis)

 

just as,

 

"The Mariupol detachment of the Ukrainian coast guards, along with the tactical aviation units of the Air Force, tank troops, artillery, mechanized companies of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and other defense and security agencies, repulsed the "armed assault" of the conditional enemy from the Sea of Azov, as part of the drills, the press service of the State Border Guard Service reports. 

....

Vessel commanders carried out maneuvers near the conditional enemy, while the crews worked out live shooting from weapons of various calibers." (UNIAN : 10 Oct., 2018) (my emphasis)

 

Furthermore, Pavel Felgenhauer (right) argues that,

 

"A Russian military expert has warned there is 'no doubt' Russia has moved nuclear missiles to the Crimean peninsula.
....
'For Moscow the Crimea is a Russian territory, so the agreements on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons do not worry her much,' Felgenhauer told Ukrainian newspaper Gordonua." (George Martin : Mail Online : 3 Oct., 2018) (my emphasis) 

And just recently a huge military convoy was spotted in Russian-occupied Crimea heading towards Simferopol.

 

Now that Trump is paying Putin back for getting him into the White house by not intending to impose sanctions on the Western companies which are involved in the construction of Nord Stream 2 (ibid UA112), and that Putin has most probably placed Russian 'nukes' on occupied Crimean soil, nonetheless Putin is worried about the outcome of the November elections in the US.

 

If the Democrats gain control of the US House of Congress they will have Putin in their sights for having stolen the US presidency from Hillary Clinton.

 

And heaven forbid if they also gain control of the US Senate!

 

One can expect a concerted Democrat push against Trump to up-the-ante against Putin if he wishes to survive in the White House for the next six months.

 

Otherwise Trump will be replaced by the hawkish anti-Russian Mike Pence (left), the Vice President.

 

 And that is not what Putin is bargaining for!

 

(to be continued)