German Chancellor Angela Merkel says that the conditions for signing the Association Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine are currently unavailable. READ MORE

During European Commission press briefing, press asks whether EC is aware of MEPs looking into claims of a bribe to foreign minister to award residence permit to Kazakh billionaire Rakhat Aliyev. READ MORE

The latest meeting of the Kazakhstani-US Energy Partnership Commission took place in Washington on October 15–16, 2012. The two delegation heads, Kazakhstan’s Minister of Oil and Gas Sauat Mynbayev and the US Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman, signed a Joint Action Plan for 2012–2013 that promotes cooperation in four broad categories: Nuclear Security and Nuclear Power, Hydrocarbon Resources, Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, and Electric Power. READ MORE

In Turkey they are concerned that new authorities in Georgia shall limit to some extent Turkish assets flow into this country. This was stated by the Director of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the National Science Academy of Armenia, orientalist Ruben Safrastyan in course of the panel discussion in Yerevan on the subject “Elections in Georgia and their Effect in the Region”. READ MORE

Poland's foreign minister has said that he expects President Obama to be more active in the Middle East after his win in the US elections on Tuesday. READ MORE

It’s not a secret that today the main financial-economic and partially geographic resource of Azerbaijan within its policy in Karabakh conflict – are particularly significant incomes from Caspian energy sources production (oil and gas). They give hope to military-political leaders of Azerbaijan to achieve cardinal advantage in military-technical sphere and activation of armament race, to finance big regional projects around Armenia, to invest or even open corruption financial aid in third countries, and undertake other steps with the target to achieve favorable change of processes within Karabakh conflict, to force Armenia to make one-side concessions. Simultaneously oil factor also increases geopolitical significance of Azerbaijan per estimations of regional and even world actors. READ MORE

This summer, after the police arrived at the handsome villa of the former Romanian prime minister Adrian Nastase to arrest him on corruption charges, he apparently pulled out a revolver and tried to kill himself. Millions of Romanians watched on television as Mr. Nastase, 62, was carried off on a stretcher, a Burberry scarf wrapped around his neck. He survived, and one week later was behind bars. READ MORE

Tonio Borg thrust into the limelight of hunt for Kazakh billionaire over Maltese residence permit. READ MORE

Afghanistan’s neighbours have conflicting aims for the strife-torn country’s future and NATO should keep a wary eye on Central Asia while reaching out to Pakistan as international troops prepare to withdraw in 2014, members of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly were told Sunday. READ MORE

Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom reported sales declines in Europe and its home market, showing the importance of its strategy to expand into Asia. READ MORE