Tag: Russia

The European Parliament has adopted a text criticising Russia's geopolitical goals, which have put Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia in a “precarious position”.

Russia yesterday (10 September) announced a ban on imports of Moldovan wines and spirits, saying they contained impurities, a move certain to be seen in the small ex-Soviet republic as retaliation for its drive to expand ties with the European Union.

The Ukrainian parliament's speaker said yesterday (9 September) that MPs would pass the laws required by Brussels as a pre-condition for concluding an EU pact in time for November's Vilnius Summit, paving the way for the signature of a landmark association agreement with the European Union. 

A potential showdown over Syria between US President Barack Obama and Russia's Vladimir Putin could overshadow a two-day meeting of world leaders beginning today (5 September) in St Petersburg initially dedicated to reviving the global economy.

Armenia will join a customs union led by its former Soviet master Russia, the country’s President Serzh Sargsyan said yesterday (3 September), a move incompatible with the free trade agreement the EU is preparing with Yerevan.

The BRICS bloc of large, emerging economies has agreed on the structure of a proposed development bank with $50 billion (€37.8 billion) in capital, but ironing out "difficult" details may take months, Russian Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak said.

The US put Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on notice yesterday (26 August) that it believes he was responsible for using chemical weapons against civilians last week, in what Secretary of State John Kerry called a "moral obscenity."

Russia has tightened customs control with Ukraine and imposed checks on the quality of its goods in what appears to be a warning to Kyiv over the planned signature of a free trade deal and broader association agreement with the European Union.

Russia has imposed a ban of chocolate imports from Ukraine’s confectionery company Roshen in what appears to be an attempt to punish its pro-European owner, Petro Poroshenko, a former top government minister and an influential businessman. 

Georgia’s foreign policy priorities have not changed since last year’s election which brought to power Georgian Dream party of Bidzina Ivanishvili, but relations with Russia are improving, writes Tedo Japaridze.

As the shale gas revolution influences how the United States views its long-term strategic interests in the Middle East, Europeans should also be asking themselves what these changes mean for their geostrategic relations. They should further be asking how they could use shale gas to reduce their dependence on Russian energy, writes Judy Dempsey.

In the light of a weakening European Union and a less reliable NATO, Budapest is reassessing its position in Europe. A more centralised control of domestic politics and a more independent foreign policy are key parts of this strategy, writes Stratfor.

EXCLUSIVE / A vote today (16 July) on whether to declare a marine protection area over an Antarctic body of water seven times the size of Germany is hanging in the balance due to Russian and Ukrainian fishing interests, the head of a European delegation to the talks has told EurActiv.

Failure to sign an association agreement with Ukraine at a regional summit in November would be a blow for the EU’s Eastern Partnership initiative aimed at pulling six former Soviet republics closer to the EU, Lithuania’s foreign minister said. EurActiv reports from Vilnius.

Germany's geographic position at the heart of Europe forces Berlin to formulate a multifaceted foreign policy. It must balance its military alliance with the United States against its energy ties with Russia, Berlin's largest natural gas supplier. It is through this context that US President Barack Obama's 18-19 June visit to Germany must be viewed, writes Stratfor.

Leaders of the Group of Eight (G8) countries are meeting in Lough Erne, Northern Ireland, on 17-18 June, under the group’s UK presidency. This EurActiv infographic shows how much each of the G8 countries spends on development assistance and how this effort compares to the country’s GNI. 

As the European Union weakens economically and institutionally, Europe's Nordic countries are considering seizing the economic opportunities presented by a comparatively stronger partner: Russia, writes Stratfor.

EU and Russian leaders appeared sharply divided over civil liberties in Russia and ways to resolve the Syrian crisis during a two-day summit that ended on Tuesday (4 June).

It appears that Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovich has already taken the political decision to cede control over the transit pipeline network to Gazprom, in exchange for lower gas prices and long-term gas transit guarantees, writes Wojciech Konończuk.

EXCLUSIVE / EU leaders will grapple with controversial issues including shale gas development and climate change mitigation at an energy summit on 22 May, documents obtained by EurActiv show.

A newly published report on a corrupt deal for the repayment of the Angola debt to Russia in the early 1990s was presented in the European Parliament yesterday (23 April) as a vivid example of the plundering that can take place in developing nations with the complicity of European banks and tax havens.