Latest Articles about Europe's East
MOLDOVA QUITTING BACK-CHANNEL NEGOTIATIONS WITH KREMLIN, SEEKS RAPPROCHEMENT WITH TIRASPOL
Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin is pulling back from the bilateral, non-transparent negotiations with the Kremlin, on which he had embarked in September 2006. Concessions offered by Chisinau incrementally in the negotiating rounds with Russian Security Council Secretary Yuri Zubakov and, periodically, with President Vladimir Putin... MORE
GAZPROM THREATENS TO REDUCE SUPPLIES TO UKRAINE
On October 2 Gazprom warned Ukraine via mass media that it would reduce gas deliveries from November onwfard, unless Ukraine pays $1.3 billion dollar worth of arrears to Gazprom. According to company spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov, these arrears accumulated for gas supplied during the nine-month period... MORE
UKRAINIAN ELECTION OVER, BUT ITS OUTCOME UNCLEAR
Ukraine’s September 30 early parliamentary election produced a hung parliament, just like the regular election in March 2006. Like last year, the Party of Regions (PRU) of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych scored more votes than other parties. The Our Ukraine-People’s Self-Defense bloc (NUNS), backed by... MORE
AKHMETOV EXPANDS STEEL AND IRON HOLDINGS ON THE EVE OF UKRAINE’S ELECTIONS
Ukrainian steel manufacturer Renat Akhmetov and Russian businessman Vadim Novinsky, principal owner of Smart Group in Ukraine, have announced a merger agreement amounting to a takeover of Smart by Akhmetov. This move should position Akhmetov clearly as the dominant force from now on among Ukraine’s... MORE
YANUKOVYCH SAYS YUSHCHENKO’S TEAM WILL RIG ELECTION
Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych has accused President Viktor Yushchenko of illegal interference in the parliamentary election campaign and his team of harboring plans to rig the vote in the September 30 parliamentary election. Ironically, three years ago it was Yushchenko who held Yanukovych responsible... MORE
BELARUS PERSECUTES OPPOSITIONISTS
In a recent statement U.S. Department of State spokesman Sean McCormack declared that Belarus has once again increased its intimidation of citizens and called on the government to release political prisoners and respect human rights. Ten days later, Pirkka Tapiola, the EU high representative for... MORE
WILL RUSSIA HELP INVESTIGATE YUSHCHENKO POISONING?
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has accused Moscow of hindering the investigation into his poisoning in 2004. What’s more, he hinted that Russia might actually have been behind the poisoning. An indignant Viktor Chernomyrdin, Russian ambassador to Ukraine, said that Russia was not involved and suggested... MORE
KAZAKHSTAN’S CADETS PREFER BELARUS TO AMERICA
Kazakhstan has strengthened its security ties with Washington since 9/11 in order to maximize the numbers of officers from Kazakhstan’s armed forces who receive military training and education in the United States. Indeed, the U.S. Department of Defense has used this as an engagement tool... MORE
TRENDS AND OPINION POLLS REVEAL SHIFTING VOTER PREFERENCES IN UKRAINE
Ukraine’s parliamentary elections on September 30 are unlikely to bring overwhelming victories for either the “orange” camp of Our Ukraine-Self Defense and the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc or the “blue” camp of the Party of Regions. Ukraine’s regional and linguistic divide makes such a landslide unlikely;... MORE
PARTY OF REGIONS CHALLENGES PRESIDENT WITH REFERENDUM PLAN
The Party of Regions (PRU), led by Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, has come up with a plan for a referendum touching on the sensitive issues of language, NATO membership, and local governance. The party’s rivals have been skeptical about the referendum: President Viktor Yushchenko... MORE