After a January 27 referendum on the future of Bulgaria’s second nuclear power plant (NPP)  failed to produce a binding result, Sofia announced in a letter to the European Commission its decision to instead construct a new 1,000-megawatt (MW) reactor at the existing Kozloduy NPP... MORE

Since Transnistria elected a new “president” on December 11, 2011, Russia has been trying to tighten its controls over this province, which was carved out of Moldova and is sustained by a force of Russian troops. Over the past year, Moscow has declared its intention... MORE

On November 15, Bulgaria signed the final investment decision on the South Stream natural gas project, becoming the last country among Gazprom partners to give the project a green light. Serbia, Hungary and Slovenia have already approved their final investment agreements with Gazprom. On November... MORE

Bulgaria has tied the approval of the South Stream gas pipeline to favorable terms in the upcoming gas supply contract with Gazprom. According to an official statement from the Bulgarian government, “The condition for the approval and signing of the final investment agreement is the... MORE

Russia is moving rapidly to start building the South Stream natural gas pipeline before the end of the year. On October 29, Serbia became the first Gazprom partner to announce its final investment decision on the construction of South Stream. Bulgaria will follow suit on... MORE

Despite Sofia’s anger with Russian demands for enormous compensation for the abandoned Belene nuclear project, Moscow remains silent just weeks before the deal on the South Stream gas pipeline is supposed to be sealed in Bulgaria’s capital. In the meantime, the center-right government of Boyko... MORE

A row between Bulgaria and Russia over compensation for the scrapped Belene nuclear power plant (NPP) project threatens to delay the start of the South Stream gas pipeline, the Kremlin’s strategic energy corridor intended to bypass Ukraine in supplying Russian gas to Europe. On the... MORE

On August 21, Romania’s Constitutional Court invalidated the July 29 national referendum on the question of removing President Traian Basescu from office. The referendum had fallen short of the constitutional quorum requirement (50 percent plus one vote of all eligible voters). On August 28, Basescu... MORE

Executive Summary  While the Romanian state has been struggling with a constitutional crisis pitting President Traian Basescu against the Social-Liberal Union (SLU) government of Victor Ponta, the Kremlin mouthpiece Voice of Russia has increasingly been instigating and drawing out the conflict. President Basescu survived the... MORE

Moscow is “pressuring” Croatia to join Gazprom’s South Stream project urgently, before Croatia’s accession to the European Union takes legal effect in 2013. An internal analysis, prepared by Croatian government officials for senior decision-makers and leaked to the press, warns that yielding to Gazprom’s demands... MORE