Europe's Risky Russian Energy Habit

After the bogus referendum in Crimea, Russian President Vladimir Putin can be increasingly confident that his annexation of Ukrainian sovereign territory will stand. The main questions now are whether a line can be drawn at Crimea and how big a price Russia will pay for its land grab.

The short-term response turns on sanctions and diplomatic pressure. The calculations here are unavoidably complicated, especially for the European Union, because its economy is so interconnected with Russia’s. If Putin gets away with annexing Crimea, Russia should be made to pay, and Europe is in the best position to extract a price. For the longer term, the U.S. and (especially) the EU need to fundamentally rethink their economic relations with Russia. There’s no need to cast the country as an implacable Cold War enemy to understand with new clarity that it isn’t a reliable friend. That means changing any policies based on the misconception that Russia is a good global citizen.