A leading energy historian, who claims to have enraged Vladimir Putin by asking him about shale energy, has said that Russia underestimated the West's dependence on oil and gas.
In an interview with the New York Times, Daniel Yergin said that one of Putin's many miscalculations was his assumption that Europe was dependent on Russian energy.
It has had the opposite effect. Europe wants to get out of dependence as quickly as possible.
Putin was like a CEO when he talked about energy markets, and that he had timed the invasion to when those markets were at their tightest, according to the Times.
He said the invasion heralded a new uncertain era and the risks are going up.
European countries are trying to reduce their dependence on Russian energy. The US banned imports of Russian oil, gas and coal, while the EU drafted a plan to wean itself off of Russian fossil fuels.
In a separate interview on Friday, Yergin said that he asked Putin the first question after the Russian president spoke at the International Economic Forum.
The historian said Putin started shouting at him when he asked about the gas.
He knew that US natural gas would compete with natural gas in Europe, and that this would really enhance the US's position in the world.
He said that the country's dependence on Russian energy had been reduced by growing American oil and gas production.
Russia's door to the West is closed, and it will have to pivot toward China as Europe moves away from Russian energy, according to a report.
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