Latest Articles about Europe

GAZPROM TARGETING UKRAINIAN INFRASTRUCTURE FOR HOSTILE TAKEOVERS

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Gazprom is moving rapidly to take over Ukraine’s gas transport system through its monopolist offshoots in Ukraine: RosUkrEnergo and UkrGazEnergo. The immediate target is Ukraine’s internal gas distribution network, although the transit system is being targeted as well. This month, on the threshold of winter,... MORE

BUCKING THE WTO, RUSSIA BROADENS ECONOMIC MEASURES AGAINST GEORGIA AND MOLDOVA

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Russia’s Inspectorate for Consumer Protection (RosPotrebNadzor) has emerged as a proxy implementer of the Russian government’s foreign policy in conflict situations, a development paralleling the Kremlin’s larger-scale moves against foreign energy companies through environmental inspectorates. On November 7, RosPotrebNadzor head Gennady Onishchenko announced that Russia... MORE

OFFICIAL MINSK OUTRAGED BY MOSCOW’S POLITICAL USE OF THE ENERGY LEVERAGE

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Belarus President Alexander Lukashenka’s visit to the Kremlin, scheduled for Friday, November 10, “will obviously be a rather difficult meeting,” according to Russia’s Ambassador in Minsk, Alexander Surikov, at a stage-setting news conference. Russia will not offer low-priced energy to Belarus, he warned, because “Russia... MORE

POLITICAL BATTLE IN UKRAINE OVER THE CONDUCT OF FOREIGN POLICY

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The governing Party of Regions and its leftist allies have launched a systematic offensive to wrest control of Ukraine’s foreign policy from the president and his appointees. This offensive is forcing President Viktor Yushchenko to defend his positions more resolutely than has hitherto been the... MORE

Devising a New Counter-Terrorism Strategy in Europe

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Before 2005, suicide terrorist attacks in Europe were only a dreaded scenario feared by police and the security community. Then, on July 7, 2005, four suicide bombers blew themselves up in three underground trains and one bus in London, causing 52 fatalities and injuring nearly... MORE

Al-Qaeda’s Caucasian Foot Soldiers

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In the West, Islamic terrorism is a threat traditionally associated with Middle Eastern men whose faces are easily perceived as "alien" and who present a suitable profile around which to organize law enforcement monitoring. Recent events have again shown that this profile is outdated. The... MORE

WILL UKRAINE JOIN WTO ANY TIME SOON?

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Ukraine is an inch from joining the World Trade Organization (WTO), which President Viktor Yushchenko has proclaimed to be his strategic goal. This feat would be the only legacy of his first term, which expires in January 2010, at least regarding efforts to join Western... MORE