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Archive - May 2011

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May 6th

Time for Plan B

A 14-year effort to negotiate an international treaty banning the production of nuclear weapons fuel is getting nowhere. Under the terms of the United Nations’ Conference on Disarmament, all 65 participants must agree. Pakistan, which is racing to develop the world’s fifth largest arsenal, is refusing to let the talks move forward. READ MORE

Russian energy moves indicate a shift in priorities

By Ioannis Michaletos

The Russian energy moves in natural gas and oil as they are being developed since late 2010, indicate a shift in priorities, namely more reliance on exports in the dynamic Asian markets and at the same time acceleration of the ongoing collaboration schemes with Western producers and traders. READ MORE

May 4th

Dispatch: Strategic Implications of Osama bin Laden's Death

Analyst Reva Bhalla discusses the strategic implications of Osama bin Laden’s death on U.S. foreign policy. READ MORE

National ambitions and energy security

By Martin Stier

During the last seven years two expansions of the European Union took place, as a result of which a number of its member states nearly doubled – from 15 to 27. From geographical point of view the newcomers can be divided into the following groups: Baltic (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), Central European or Vyshegrad (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia), Balkan (Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia) and Mediterranean (Cyprus, Malta). READ MORE

Georgia’s Vice PM: South Ossetia and Abkhazia are not ‘frozen conflicts’

The occupied Georgian territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in the wake of war with Russia in August 2008 should not be considered as a "frozen conflict," Giorgi Baramidze, vice-prime minister of Georgia responsible for European and Euro-Atlantic integration.
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May 2nd

Russia-Poland: Neighbors should not quarrel

By Andrzej Rozenek

In the last few years Polish-Russian relations have been like fairground ride, with all its ups and downs. Sometimes even adrenalin junkies got sick, and sometimes they would cheer. READ MORE

THE LETTER OF THE US SECRETARY OF STATE SUPPORTS EFFORTS OF THE GOVERNMENT OF LITHUANIA

The United States strongly supports efforts of the Government of Lithuanian to advance energy diversification and energy security in the Baltic region, reads the letter of the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius Ažubalis. READ MORE

Ukraine Raises $790 Million For Chernobyl Shelter Project at Donor Conference

By Pavel Korduban

International donors committed a total of some 550 million Euros ($790 million) for the Chernobyl Shelter Facility (CSF) fund at the donor conference in Kyiv on April 19. Although this is less than the Ukrainian government originally hoped to raise, it is still an achievement given that the global economy has not recovered from the financial crisis. The recent nuclear accident at the Japanese nuclear plant Fukushima 1 must have attracted more media attention to Chernobyl, consequently it was easier for Ukraine to attract additional donors. At the same time, this prevented Japan, one of the key donors, from contributing more to the CSF given that it now has a similar expensive problem to cope with. READ MORE