Latest Articles about Europe
Chancellor Merkel’s Letter Perturbs EU’s Energy Debate
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has reacted negatively to the high-level meeting in Budapest, which improved the prospects for European Union funding of the Nabucco gas transport project (see EDM, January 29, 30). Merkel has taken a contrary position in a confidential letter to EU Commission... MORE
Slovak Government Invites Gazprom into the Country
On January 23 in Bratislava, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Gazprom Vice-President Aleksandr Medvedev announced the intention to create a Slovak-Gazprom joint enterprise. Fico stated specifically that he wanted such an enterprise to compete against SPP (Slovensky plynarensky priemysel--Slovak Gas Industry), the joint company... MORE
Gazprom to Reduce Gas Transit to Europe on Ukraine-Slovakia Route
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Gazprom Vice-President Aleksandr Medvedev have launched talks about creating a Slovak-Gazprom joint enterprise. They announced on January 23 in Bratislava that the proposed new entity would compete against SPP, a company that is owned jointly by the Slovak state... MORE
Ukrainian Chief Banker in Legal Limbo
The Ukrainian parliament has exacerbated both the political and economic crises in Ukraine by voting to dismiss National Bank (NBU) head Volodymyr Stelmakh. Consequently, it is not clear who is running the central bank in a country that has been among the hardest hit by... MORE
Nabucco Conference in Budapest, Part Two: Gas Supply and Transport—Diversification’s Twin Sides
The high-level conference in Budapest on the Nabucco gas project (see EDM, January 20, 22, 23, 27, 29) underscored a reality that seems to slip from the conceptual grasp of some influential West European circles. This reality is that diversification of supply sources and transport... MORE
Seven Chechens Arrested in Austria in Connection with Murder of Ex-Kadyrov Bodyguard
Agence France-Presse reported on January 28 that Austrian police had arrested seven suspects that day in connection with the murder of Umar Israilov in Vienna on January 13. Israilov, a 27-year-old former Chechen rebel who was subsequently forced to serve in Ramzan Kadyrov’s security detail,... MORE
Nabucco Conference in Budapest, Part One: Moderate Expectations, Moderate Promise
On January 26 and 27 Hungary hosted a high-level policy conference on the Nabucco gas transport project, with participants encompassing the entire producer-transit-consumer chain from the Caspian basin to Europe, and with active involvement by the European Union for the first time. The event did... MORE
Commentary – Territorial Claims Can Work Two Ways: Russia and Ukraine
The majority of Western comments on territorial claims arising from the breakup of the USSR focus on Russia’s demands against its neighbors. The best known, such as the Crimea and frozen conflicts in the Caucasus, are frequently mentioned in the Western media. Added to this... MORE
A Window of Opportunity for the Nabucco Project at Budapest Meeting
The Nabucco gas transport project, whose stakeholders and institutional backers are holding a high-level meeting in Budapest on January 26 and 27, faces a unique window of opportunity in a reshaped strategic context (see EDM, January 6, 22). The meeting is being held in the... MORE
UK Trial Exposes al-Qaeda Terrorist Network with Connections to Pakistan
In a trial that passed with remarkably little fanfare last December, a jury in Manchester, England, convicted Rangzieb Ahmed and Habib Ahmed (no relation) on charges of being members of al-Qaeda. In a released statement, the Crown Prosecution Service described Rangzieb Ahmed as “an important... MORE