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Archive - May 2011

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May 18th

Europe's Nabucco Pipeline Delayed Again

By Judy Dempsey

The European Union’s plans to start construction on the Nabucco pipeline, which is intended to reduce dependence on Russia for natural gas, have been delayed for another year, until 2013, because the consortium has no gas supply contracts lined up. READ MORE

MEP: EU-India FTA should not lead to a race to the bottom

The Free Trade Agreement currently being negotiated between India and the EU must be accompanied by a clear commitment to respect international social and environmental standards, according to Graham Watson, chair of the European Parliament's delegation on EU-India relations, which has a say on trade deals. READ MORE

May 16th

Ukrainian-Russian Dialogue: Intermediate Results

By Sergey Tolstov

The situation in Ukrainian policy that has established after the visits of the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his deputy Igor Sechin, comes out of the frameworks of bilateral Ukrainian-Russian relations. That is why it is important to analyze, where the “main vector” of political debates moves and which may be the results. READ MORE

It's Time to Re-Align India

By Sadanand Dhume

Like a monster in a B-grade horror film, India's love affair with non-alignment refuses to die. During the Cold War, socialist India purported to stand aloof of the U.S.-USSR divide, while in fact tilting toward the Soviet Union and against the West. The end of the Cold War should have ended this approach to foreign policy. Unfortunately, it hasn't. READ MORE

Russia, Pakistan pledge to combat terrorism

Russia and Pakistan on Thursday pledged to boost economic ties and coordinate efforts to fight terror as the Kremlin welcomed the Pakistani president for a key visit after the killing of Osama bin Laden. READ MORE

May 13th

Race on for Kazakh uranium

By Roman Muzalevsky

As global nuclear energy demand grows, countries possessing uranium reserves are poised to reap enormous economic and political dividends from production and export of this resource. Yet, the gains may come with costs as global rivalry accelerates among major powers, concurrently enhancing environmental, health, and proliferation risks of global and regional proportions. READ MORE

Fellegi: In energy policy everything goes according to plan

Member State ministers will discuss the EU’s external energy relations in Gödöllő, on 2-3 May 2011. This will greatly assist the succeeding Polish Presidency, which treats the uniform external energy policy as a key dossier, said the Minister for National Development, Tamás Fellegi, to eu2011.hu, The Minister believes that the Hungarian Presidency has accomplished its energy management objectives. READ MORE

Astana Establishes Direct Dialogue of Investors

Investment attractiveness of Kazakhstan is proven by the fact that after the global financial crisis, which has weakened mutual trust between European and Asian partners, it is Astana to hold the Annual Summit of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the accompanying events on May 20th -21th  in Astana. READ MORE

May 11th

U.S. Official on Russia-Georgia WTO Talks

There might be “a creative solution” to Russia-Georgia WTO-related dispute by providing transparency of border crossing points in the breakaway regions without putting there Georgian customs officials, a senior White House official said on April 15. READ MORE

NATO: A Victim of U.S. Smothering

By Ted Galen Carpenter

European leadership of the second phase of the military intervention in Libya has not gone especially well. Although the United States officially transferred responsibility for the operation to NATO, that change was more impressive in the realm of press releases and organizational charts than substance. Even the notion of a “NATO” command was largely an illusion. It really meant transition to a British and French-led mission with token support from some other European NATO members. Several key alliance players, especially Germany and Turkey, are noticeable by their absence. In fact, both Berlin and Ankara have refused even to endorse the mission, much less contribute military forces. READ MORE