Eastern Europe
A Georgian perspective: Peace in the South Caucasus is the only common goal
It is perfectly natural for Georgia, as a neighbouring country, to express her readiness to support a Nagorno-Karabakh peace process and host a dialogue between Armenia and Azerbaijan, writes Victor Kipiani.
Partnership missing: SOTEU ignores the calls of Eastern allies for positive political signals
The EU’s Eastern Partnership is often touted by European officials as one of the bloc’s most foreign policies but was barely mentioned in Commission president’s first annual address, despite calls for more political signalling. Despite a strong focus on foreign...
Erdogan in search of EU ‘allies’ to block sanctions
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has held a series of contacts with EU leaders in recent days, aiming to find allies who would block potential sanctions against Turkey at the 24-25 September EU summit over its illegal drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean.
MEPs praise Georgian political dialogue and COVID response, call for continued reforms
The European parliament on Wednesday (16 September) with overwhelming majority praised Georgia’s progress but called on the EU and NATO hopeful to press on with justice reforms and depoliticisation of the judiciary. Following the adoption of the report, the Georgian...
Russian intervention in Belarus is already a fact
The international community is reluctant to act and prefers to stick to empty condemnations of Vladimir Putin’s toxic acts. But Putin is ready to intervene in Belarus and the West cannot shy away, as it did in Ukraine. Only a 'big stick' policy can turn the tide, argues Hans van Baalen.
EU, Germany, Britain pressure Belarus on snatched opposition figure
The EU on Monday (7 September) led calls for Belarus to immediately release over 600 people arrested for protesting against a controversial election that extended strongman Alexander Lukashenko's 26 years in power.
Belarus arrests hundreds as opposition figure ‘kidnapped’
Belarus said on Monday (7 September) that police had detained more than 600 people at weekend protests and the opposition said a senior figure had been snatched off the streets, as authorities intensified efforts to end weeks of demonstrations.
Lithuania says EU’s inaction over Belarus undermines foreign policy credibility
The EU's lack of action over Belarus is undermining the credibility of its foreign policy, Lithuanian foreign affairs minister Linas Linkevicius told the Financial Times newspaper in an interview published on Sunday (6 September).
Time is running out for Lukashenko
Alexander Lukashenko lost the August elections in Belarus, and new polls must be held immediately. Anything else should be treated no differently from a coup d'etat, writes Andrius Kubilius.
Belarus opposition leader: Lukashenko showed weakness by seeking support from Moscow
The only Belarusian opposition leader who has not gone into exile, Maria Kolesnikova, is positive about the future of the pro-democracy protests in the eastern European country. EURACTIV's media partner EFE reports.
EU foreign ministers agree to move forward on Belarus sanctions
EU foreign ministers reached a political agreement in Berlin on Friday (28 August) on punitive measures against high-ranking supporters of Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko to pressure him into holding new elections.
Putin vows military support for Belarus’ Lukashenko
Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed military support for embattled Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday (27 August), while urging a peaceful resolution to unrest and demonstrations that erupted after a disputed election. EU ambassadors in the capital Minsk on Thursday...
‘Belarus has woken up’, opposition leader Tikhanovskaya tells EU lawmakers
The protests to unseat Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko are neither pro- nor anti-Russian but a democratic revolution "for the right of the people to decide their own destiny," the leader of the protests told an extraordinary meeting of the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee on Tuesday (25 August).
US report on Georgia: Political will needed to cement the democratic elections
A prestigious non-partisan US institute gave a generally positive assessment of the recent electoral reforms in Georgia, a country in the EU's neighbourhoud nourishing hopes to join the Union and NATO.
With the US absent, smaller powers lead the way in support for Belarus
With the US and other diplomatic heavyweights absent, Belarus's smaller European neighbours have been leading the diplomatic response to the post-election crisis, writes Anna Wieslander.
Crisis in Belarus not geopolitical, EU leaders say after 3-hour summit
EU leaders made it clear following a 3-hour long online summit on the situation in Belarus on Wednesday (19 August) that the crisis following the controversial elections was not a geopolitical one and that it should not antagonise Russia.OpinionStakeholder Opinion
EU envoy to Chisinau behaves like “Big Brother” in Moldova
The recent scandal caused by the head of the EU Delegation to the Republic of Moldova is probably one of the worst diplomatic incidents for a EU representative in recent years.
EU leaders to hold emergency talks on Belarus crisis
EU leaders will hold an emergency video summit on Wednesday (19 August) to discuss the crisis in Belarus, where protests are swelling against the disputed re-election of longtime President Alexander Lukashenko.
12 years after war: Georgia moving forward but still searching for justice
The Russian aggression of August 2008 against Georgia was a blatant attempt to change the borders of Europe by force, launching a series of events spreading over the wider region, writes David Zalkaliani.
Georgia: continued EU support needed to fight ‘information disorder’
Anti-Western messages in Georgia have doubled in number, with a particular increase in anti-American and anti-NATO messages related to the US support on security issues and the post-Soviet country’s integration into the transatlantic defence alliance, a recent report has found....
Hundreds protest in Belarus after two main challengers barred from election ballot
Hundreds of people protested in the Belarusian capital Minsk on on Tuesday (14 July) after the central election commission refused to register the two main rivals of President Alexander Lukashenko as candidates in the August 9 presidential election.
French MEPs visit Crimea illegally to observe Russia’s constitutional vote
Ukraine's ambassador to the EU has written to European Parliament President David Sassoli to condemn a move by a group of French MEPs who are visiting the peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.
Georgia votes on turning West, not East
Despite the Russian occupation, COVID-19 and the economic recession in the world, Georgia continues to strengthen its democracy – the government is currently preparing for Parliamentary elections scheduled for October 2020, writes Archil Talakvadze.
