The group of ten Russian spies arrested last June in the US by the FBI and later deported to Russia in a spy exchange was revealed by Moscow last week to have been betrayed by a high-ranking double agent in the Foreign Security Service (SVR)–... MORE

In a bid to expand its presence in Central Asia in geopolitical competition with the US and Russia, China seems determined to use every available means ranging from the energy sector to intensifying its military cooperation within the framework of bilateral “strategic partnership” programs. One... MORE

Even before the US midterm elections, the Russian government and media expressed concern that the New START treaty, signed in Prague in April of 2010, might not obtain ratification (ITAR-TASS, October 18, 28; Novaya Gazeta, October 25). There is no doubt that the Russian government... MORE

Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, and Gazprom CEO, Aleksei Miller, have collected Bulgaria’s signature on the South Stream project on November 13 (“Bulgaria Rejoins Gazprom’s South Stream Project,” EDM, November 16).The signing marks the latest move in a rapid expansion of Kremlin-controlled energy companies into... MORE

On November 13 in Sofia, Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, and his Bulgarian counterpart, Boyko Borissov, witnessed the signing of Bulgaria’s accession to Gazprom’s South Stream project (Interfax, BTA, Novinite, November 13, 14; Dnevnik, 24 Chasa, November 14, 15; Kommersant, Vedomosti, November 15, 16).Bulgaria holds... MORE

Turkey’s reserved position on the US-led missile shield ahead of NATO’s Lisbon Summit on November 19-20 continues to remain a major issue affecting Turkish-US relations. Since the US values this project as part of its overall policy on the Iranian nuclear program and its agenda... MORE

The G20 summit in Seoul last week was outstanding in its intensity of divergences that this crisis-born institution sought to harmonize. The US unfortunate unilateralism in money-making and China’s shameless currency manipulation, the prudence of budget austerity and the need in stimulating stalled growth, irreducible... MORE

On November 9, the European Commission published its 2010 progress report on Turkey’s performance in the accession process. Against the background of the declining popularity of EU membership in Turkey, the report has raised interest in the EU process. Yet, it remains to be seen... MORE

Uzbekistan is increasingly set on expanding regional trade and transport initiatives, which is also part of a wider regional trend. In September, Uzbek President, Islam Karimov, and his Azeri counterpart, Ilham Aliev, agreed to support regional transit projects as part of overall efforts to revive... MORE

Since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has maintained a cautiously optimistic but delicate balance to secure its existence amidst perilous surroundings. The first and most immediate dimension of this balancing act is the KRG’s precarious relationship with the... MORE