"It’s hardly a secret that, even if it has the political will (or inclination) to do so, Germany’s willingness to push back against a Russian incursion ('minor' or otherwise) is severely constrained by its dependence on Russian gas (I included some statistics on this here), a dependence that, for various reasons, the opening of the Nord Steam 2 pipelines will (if it happens, and I think that it’s highly likely that it will) make even more dangerous than it already is."

"Most remarkable is that the critics of nuclear and natural gas are ignoring the current economic and political crisis wrought by their policies. Vladimir Putin is the main beneficiary of Europe’s climate obsessions and hostility to fossil fuels and nuclear power. He has energy leverage over the Continent that no dictator should be able to have. Brussels is belatedly trying to correct this blunder by encouraging smarter energy investments."

"Policy decisions will not be uniform, and the path of the energy transition will undoubtedly be bumpy with fits and starts along the way. Coming out of COP26, policymakers pledged to strengthen 2030 emissions targets by the end of 2022 rather than waiting for the formal 'stock taking' process, but a greater focus on reducing methane leakage is likely an indication that governments are growing skeptical that fossil fuels can be displaced quickly. Additionally, midterm elections in the US could derail the Biden Administration’s environmental agenda, proving all politics, even international environmental politics, are local."

"A Russian invasion of Ukraine and the U.S. and an allied country response would have ripple effects beyond Europe, exacerbating inflation and roiling global energy markets."

"Various groups have acquired land or negotiated water rights in order to preserve habitats for wildlife. Others have directly acquired grazing permits so that land is not used for climate-intensive agriculture. Some campaigners have even outbid logging companies for timber leases in Montana, or successfully acquired trawling permits and vessels from fishermen in California."

"If Merkel at last recognized the folly of Germany’s climate policy overreach and Macron decided that re-election as president of France was better than virtue-signaling on climate, the world would owe them a debt for teaching us that reality can be avoided temporarily, but it never can be canceled. We might also hope that some American politicians are taking note of what is happening with their Old-World counterparts."