Latest Articles about Balkans
Nabucco Intergovernmental Agreement Signed in Ankara
On July 13 the Nabucco transit countries removed an important obstacle for the strategic pipeline project. Attending a high profile meeting hosted by Turkey, the prime ministers of Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Turkey inked the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA). The ceremony was also attended by... MORE
Sochi Agreements and Aftermath Deflate South Stream Hype (Part Two)
Despite facing gas production shortfalls (relative to internal and external supply commitments) post-2010, Russia is multiplying its supply offers to European consumer countries through South Stream and other pipeline projects. Gazprom signed bilateral agreements on building South Stream with state-controlled Italian, Bulgarian, Greek, and Serbian... MORE
Romanian-Ukrainian Espionage Scandal Exacerbates Already Poor Relations
NATO and European Union (EU) membership for Romania was meant to consign to history its penchant for territorial claims and its poor record on national minority rights, but this was not to be. Ukraine, the non-NATO member with the greatest level of cooperation with NATO,... MORE
Corruption in Romania—Can It Be Eliminated?
Romania and Bulgaria find themselves in the unenviable position of being the poster children for corruption in the EU. Bulgaria is plagued by organized crime gangs roaming the streets of its cities and killing for hire, while Romania is saddled with corrupt politicians who seem... MORE
Bulgaria’s “Overgas,” a Russian Spy in Canada, and Gazprom
In February 2009, after the Ukrainian-Russian gas conflict ended and deliveries of gas were restored to Bulgaria, Bulgarian officials announced that they would once again seek to remove two middleman companies-Overgas, Inc., and Wintershall Erdgas Handelshaus Zug AG (WIEE)-from the gas supply chain between Russia... MORE
Serbia’s Oil Industry: a Christmas Gift to Gazprom
On December 24, 2008, the Serbian government ceded control over Serbia’s Oil Industry (Naftna Industrija Srbije, NIS) to Russian Gazprom’s oil subsidiary, Gazprom Neft. Motivated to a large extent politically and negotiated poorly by Belgrade, the cession amounts to a Christmas gift for Gazprom and... MORE
Romania Firmly Aboard Nabucco Project, Hints at Leverage vis-a-vis South Stream
President Traian Basescu and Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu have ruled out Romania’s participation in Gazprom’s South Stream project. Instead, they reaffirmed the country’s full commitment to the Western-backed Nabucco project. The two leaders acted after Gazprom had hinted at the possible inclusion of Romania in... MORE
GAZPROM SEDUCING ROMANIAN GOVERNMENT WITH SOUTH STREAM
Romania could be described until now as the staunchest and perhaps last remaining loyalist in the Western-backed Nabucco project. While four of the five Nabucco participant countries (save Romania) and a number of other countries in the region are variously negotiating Russian options, such as... MORE
ROMANIA IS THE LATEST TARGET FOR GAZPROM’S SOUTH STREAM TEMPTATIONS
On October 17 in Moscow, Gazprom president Alexei Miller conferred in the presence of the Romanian ambassador with the general managers of Romania’s Transgaz and Romgaz companies,. Gazprom’s communiqué implied, and subsequent leaks to the Russian media corroborated, that the Russian side proposed including Romania... MORE
IS GAZPROM MANEUVERING TO OBTAIN ROMANIAN ALUMINUM?
Romania’s important aluminum industry has long held an attraction for Russian companies. Two years ago their efforts came to the attention of the Romanian Intelligence Service (Serviciului Român de Informaţii), the SRI, which viewed these initiatives with growing concern. A 2006 memo from the SRI... MORE