Some very interesting points raised and an enjoyable piece. Two points I would raise, however.  First is that Putin may be less powerless and more complicit in these shenanigans than you imply. Second and more interesting would be an estimate of how much Ukranian gas was distributed elsewhere within the Soviet Union pre 1990, when of course things were very different politically but this still has relevance to Ukraine's "theft" of current Russian gas if this can be seen as some form of restitution.