In fact, of course, let's be honest with ourselves, in itself the technical docking of the first string of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline under construction is an expected event, one might say, in the current realities, it is quite everyday and certainly not sensational from any side. : he was expected from day to day. And the builders, as well as not so long ago, the operator company, which successfully emerged from American sanctions, did not hide their plans from anyone.

And the fact that it was Putin who announced this and precisely at the SPIEF does not in the least deny this "everyday life and non-sensationalism."

It only emphasizes the symbolic rather than purely technical meaning of the given - in general, somewhere even pretending in the current circumstances to the meaning of almost "historical", except for jokes, despite its deliberate "everydayness" - events.

Below we will definitely explain why, but for now a few words, so to speak, about the "hardware", since it most certainly deserves it.

So.

As Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, the laying of the first string of the long-suffering Nord Stream 2 pipeline is finally

completed successfully.

And just as importantly, this week the readiness of the Russian linear part of the gas route in its onshore part was ensured.

Up to the Slavyanskaya compressor station, which is the starting point of the new gas pipeline.

By the way, as Vladimir Putin stated, gas has been supplied to Slavyanskaya at the moment.

This means that theoretically, as the Russian president said, Gazprom will be “ready to fill Nord Stream 2 (c) with gas immediately after the completion of work on the offshore section.

That is, according to Putin, again theoretically, it takes about ten days to start gas supplies along the first string of Nord Stream 2 (this does not mean at all, of course, we immediately warn those who are especially impatient that in ten days gas will flow through it, even in test mode).

Naturally, the construction of the second string of the gas pipeline is still underway.

Moreover, according to the testimony of the head of the Austrian oil and gas company OMV, Rainer Seele, there are still about 50 km left, which is not so much.

Nevertheless, the cautious Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak still slowly announces the full readiness of Nord Stream 2 for regular work only until the end of the year.

Accordingly, it is unlikely that "contract" gas will flow through both strings of the new pipe by the end of this year, which is not surprising: there is still quite a lot of both purely technical and legal work.

Although, in principle - this is now for sure - is not very important.

Technical details - and nothing more.

Here something else is much more important: if, for example, for Europe, in addition to the understandable commercial value, it was a vital project from the point of view of the energy security of the subcontinent, then for Russia, again, in addition to an understandable purely economic interest, it was also an opportunity to prove once again that it is able to control all major Eurasian trade.

Despite the application of an overt "containment policy" towards it and planting poorly managed and irresponsible "gray zones" at problem transit points - in this case, the transit of energy carriers.

And now the Russians have proved that they, including their transcontinental transport corridors, are quite capable of bypassing these "gray zones" in the most banal way.

They have enough funds and technical competencies for this, including in such a sensitive area as energy trade.

Moreover, even in the case when the "gray zone" turns out to be the size of an entire country, Ukraine, for example, a rather big, in principle, and quite a European territory, as it were.

What is there to talk about some kind of Baltic states.

Thus, in fact, we get the same “symbolic meaning”: Nord Stream 2 itself is by no means as important for Russia as it is, for example, important for Germany itself - with such things as its own energy safety, no joke. But if you look at this project as a kind of “icing on the cake”, if you like, you can easily make sure that the transport corridors bypassing the unstable and uncontrolled Russian territories are now being completed not only in the field of energy trade.

Although here, in addition to Nord Stream 2, there is also simply Nord Stream, as well as the Turkish Stream and the rapid increase in LNG production capacities: in fact, all this beauty testifies precisely to the purposeful departure of transport corridors from any transit dependencies from third countries "due to diversification including.

Actually, this is precisely why Nord Stream 2 is so important for us, as well as for the whole real world (in order to be convinced of this, just look at the movement in the securities markets) - it is a kind of symbol of the failed "containment of Russia" in global continental trade, including energy.

And this, by the way, is at the same time our very weighty application for what in the Middle Ages was called the control of caravan routes on the gigantic Eurasian continent.

Moreover, if we speak even from the point of view of pure logistics, then it is this control, including through the chain of limitrophe countries, mostly fragments of the once great Soviet empire or its own empire, Eastern European vassals, and our geopolitical rivals tried intercept.

Which, by the way, is not surprising.

If the wars of the twentieth century were classic “wars for resources and territories”, then the current ones, including “hybrid” ones, are openly waged now also for control over trade and transport flows.

Although, we must pay tribute, already in the last century, the same unfortunate state of Panama, our "overseas partners" were not at all "for resources" and not even for human rights.

And "only" for the Panama Canal.

However, all this is more about the “grand strategy”, but we have questions and much more concretely: it is no coincidence that such a desperate reaction to the predicted, in principle, event happened in Poland and Ukraine.

People, in general, are quite understandable.

This is for the “big players”, no matter how the relationship between them develops, the completion of the construction of not even the “first line”, but the entire Nord Stream 2 is not a game over at all, but just another move on the “great chessboard”.

Now they will regroup and continue their never-ending game: it is naive to think that someone is here and at least in something "finally" won or lost.

It is not at all the same with the territories that purposefully transferred to one of the "big players", in fact, nothing more than their own sovereignty, for some - no matter what - the promised goodies.

If the trend for Russia to restore control over Eurasian transport flows continues - and there are no prerequisites for otherwise, the port infrastructure on the Black Sea and the Baltic was not built for that, and the "piece of iron" around Ukraine was pulled through Millerovo - then their role is precisely in economic containment Moscow turns out to be completely exhausted.

Together with the service function, so to speak.

What is most interesting is that their role in the military containment of our country will be almost simultaneously exhausted: if something, God forbid, happens, it’s not them, it’s them “potential Western allies” will have to protect them - too much, in parallel with the construction of Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2, the Russian army has also changed. Which they are so obviously not rivals now that it is somehow not very convenient to talk about it. No, we must pay tribute, while they still represent a certain political and other interest, but even here the same Americans have always been able to calculate the ratio of quality and price. And, unfortunately, it is quite well known how they deal with used and no longer needed limitrophes from world history: at best, they are simply “forgotten”, making it possible to quietly and calmly plunge into a patriarchal primitive state.But for this, the limitrophe must be at least internally quite stable, quiet, obedient and neither the former owners, nor their past opponents especially strongly irritate. And the best thing is not to remind about yourself at all, which is clearly not our case.

And in the worst case, they are simply disposed of.

And I just ask - do not ask me how.

The point of view of the author may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.