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July 2012

It’s time for U.S. President to visit Central Asia, director of Eurasia Center at Atlantic Council in Washington says

It’s time for the U.S. President to visit countries of Central Asia, according to ambassador Ross Wilson, director of the Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center at the Atlantic Council in Washington, reported Silk Road Newsline. READ MORE

Russia Intensifies Intervention Options in Central Asia

By Roger McDermott

Moscow plans to re-equip the multi-role brigades in the Russian Ground Forces with wheeled military vehicles. The decision to displace the existing tracked platforms is meant to enhance operational mobility. The initiative emanated from Army-General Nikolai Makarov, the Chief of the General Staff, who was recently buoyed in his post after President Vladimir Putin issued an ukaz extending his service by an additional two years. Therefore, Makarov is likely to remain in his post until October 2014. READ MORE

Giorgi Baramidze: “Russia believes that the Georgian factor should be eliminated”

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Georgia is the most recent example of the serious threats that the Black Sea states are facing.

Its dynamic and successful domestic reforms coupled with the intention to determine its own foreign policy prompted Russia to apply informational and economic pressure followed by direct military assault in 2008. Russia seems to view Georgia as a dangerous role model for other post-soviet states.

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Who Shall Become the Successor of Yanukovych?

By Oleg Gorbunov

Ukrainian politicum after adoption the law on languages in the second reading have come to move.  All political forces started getting ready in advance to the pre-electoral struggle – in autumn they shall fight for the places in the Supreme Council Verkhovna Rada. The same active is a pre-campaign on the Presidential elections, planned for 2015. Already now the favorites have been marked. Together with that the team of the President of Ukraine prepares a big Constitutional reform. Where shall this take Ukraine to? Who shall claim for the post of the President in 2015? Whether the team of V. Yanukovych breaks? Why does the acting President of the country need the Constitutional Assembly and which subjects shall be the main ones in its work? Ukrainian experts answer “Plitcom.ru” on these and other questions. READ MORE

The Euro’s Latest Reprieve

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By Joseph E. Stiglitz

Like an inmate on death row, the euro has received another last-minute stay of execution. It will survive a little longer. The markets are celebrating, as they have after each of the four previous “euro crisis” summits – until they come to understand that the fundamental problems have yet to be addressed. READ MORE

“Gazprom” Is Ready to Stop the Supplies of Gas to Poland, Ukraine is the next one

Russia on the case of Poland intends to show Ukraine, that it doesn’t plan to reduce the gas price. According to the source in Russian monopoly, if the court cancels the treaty not beneficial for Poland, “Gazprom” shall simply stop supplies of gas to this country. Moreover, the company warns, after such events this Poland shall hardly be able to sign a more advantageous agreement. READ MORE

Why Russia Is Backing Syria

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By Ruslan Pukhov

Many in the West believe that Russia’s support for Syria stems from Moscow’s desire to profit from selling arms to Bashar al-Assad’s government and maintain its naval facility at the Syrian port of Tartus. But these speculations are superficial and misguided. The real reason that Russia is resisting strong international action against the Assad regime is that it fears the spread of Islamic radicalism and the erosion of its superpower status in a world where Western nations are increasingly undertaking unilateral military interventions. READ MORE

Latvian Lessons

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The Baltics are growing after austerity—and they resent Mediterranean bail-outs READ MORE

The Realist Prism: U.S. Power and Its Discontents

By Nikolas Gvosdev

There are two simultaneous and contradictory trends occurring right now in the international system. The first is the diffusion of power, as reflected by the displacement of the old Group of Seven, which at its founding in the 1970s comprised the bulk of the world’s productive capacity, by the Group of 20, where there is no longer one dominant power capable of driving the global agenda. The second is the reality that the United States still far outstrips any other one state or group of states in terms of capabilities, ranging from the power of its currency to its ability to project military force to any corner of the globe. READ MORE

Azerbaijan a reliable and important player on global energy scene - Polish foreign minister

Poland plans to discuss with Azerbaijan bilateral political, trade and energy issues, Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in a an interview with Trend on the eve of his visit to Baku. READ MORE

Struggle for Regional Leadership Gradually Comes to Nuclear Issue

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By Arthur Dunn

Most citizens of Turkey vote for the possessing independent nuclearweapon in case of possible nuclear threat from Iran. READ MORE

EC President Van Rompuy: The relations between Azerbaijan and the EU are deepening

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rend interviews President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, on the eve of his visit to Azerbaijan READ MORE

Kazakhstan to increase military cooperation with Poland and Japan

The Minister of Defence of the Republic of Kazakhstan received Minister of National Defence of the Republic of Poland Tomasz Siemoniak. The two sides signed an agreement between the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Government of the Republic of Poland on cooperation in defence sphere, Defence. Professionals reports. READ MORE

Poland ready for "reset" in relations with Lithuania

Poland's Minister of Foreign Affairs Radoslaw Sikorski said on Thursday his country was ready for a new opening in relations with Lithuania, the Polish news agency PAP reports. READ MORE

The CSTO Enfant terrible

By Dmitry Ontoyev

Suspension of Uzbekistan Membership in the Organization May Have the Most Serious Consequences READ MORE

Lithuanian Prime Minister to meet with Polish counterpart in Warsaw next week

Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius is going to Poland next week to meet with the country's Prime Minister Donald Tusk, diplomatic sources have confirmed to BNS on Friday. READ MORE

The U.S. and EU Participate in Trans-border Field Training Exercise with Armenia

The United States Departments of State, Defense, and Energy and the European Commission participated in a series of field training exercises with Armenia and Georgia from July 9-12.  The exercises used realistic scenarios to demonstrate and strengthen notification and response procedures in the event of illicit movement of weapons of mass destruction (WMD)-related materials. READ MORE

Ukraine Is Falling Behind Moldova, Georgia and Armenia in European Integration

By Taras Kuzio

In the European Union’s second Eastern Partnership Integration Index (EPII) report, trends evident already last year are continuing. Ukraine is moving “away from its one-time status as the ENP [European Neighborhood Policy] poster child.” This report confirms the EU’s assessment of the first year of the new ENP. “The area of deep and sustainable democracy experienced a further deterioration in 2011,” and “several leading opposition figures, including former Prime Minister Tymoshenko, were subjected to selective justice, characterized by un-transparent judicial processes,” the EPII proclaims. READ MORE

What is Going to Happen to Middle Asia?

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By Piotr Woźniak

Each day gets us closer to the date of withdrawal of the main part of American troops and all NATO units from Afghanistan, planned on the end of 2014, and it becomes clear, that the prospects of Middle Asia look more indefinite. As it has already been known, a part of military equipment the USA plans to give the former soviet republics of the region. READ MORE

Afghan and Central Asian Members of Parliament work to strengthen cooperation

A group of 14 parliamentarians from Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan visited NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. The visit - organised by NATO Public Diplomacy Division - was part of a long-standing programme of cooperation in the field of public diplomacy between the Alliance and these countries. The group met with representatives of the Diplomatic Corps, as well as with members of the International Staff, including Ambassador Dirk Brengelmann, Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy. READ MORE

Lithuanian-based NATO Energy Security Center of Excellence to be officially established

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A Vilnius-based NATO Energy Security Center of Excellence will be established by signing official documents at the headquarters of the NATO Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk, Virginia, on Tuesday. READ MORE

NATO nixes Syria action plan

NATO rejected Turkey’s request for the adoption of a contingency plan to include the establishment a no-fly zone over Syrian airspace, which was made during a meeting last week in Brussels after Turkey invoked Article Four of the NATO Treaty in response to Syria’s downing of a Turkish jet in international airspace. READ MORE

Common Russian - Polish proclamation to be signed in August

By Maria Nalewajko

During a visit of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and whole Russia in August a Common Proclamation to the Nations of Russia and Poland about the reconciliation between our nations will be signed – informed the KAI (Catholic Informative Agency) Archbishop Stanislaw Budzik. READ MORE

Kazakhstan to play most active role in supporting reverse transit of ISAF forces from Afghanistan

Kazakhstan will play “the most active role” in supporting reverse transit of the U.S. and NATO forces from Afghanistan, according to President Nazarbayev’s advisor for political affairs, Ermukhamet Ertysbayev. READ MORE

Deputies of European Parliament: Ukraine is Governed by Oligarchs, Their Assets should be Frozen

By Valeriia Amitina

Deputies of the European Parliament claim that Ukraine is governed by oligarchs, and according to them, it prevents the country from developing. READ MORE

Turkmenistan intends to resolve dispute with Azerbaijan on the Caspian Sea through International Court of Justice

The acting Minister of Oil and Gas and Mineral Resources of Turkmenistan, Kakageldi Abdyllaev, commented on the situation around Turkmenistan’s activities at Serdar field. READ MORE

European Leaders Cling To Ideal Of Integration

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By Tom Gjelten

German Chancellor Angela Merkel talks with European Central Bank President Mario Draghi (left) and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti (right) during a summit of European leaders in Brussels. They reached an agreement on a growth plan for the continent, and world markets surged. READ MORE

Russia in the Islamic World

By Sergey Markedonov

Why does Russia so stubbornly support the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad? This question is frequently discussed in Western media and political circles. Many American and European analysts consider Moscow’s policy a “phantom of the Cold War” or some kind of dictatorial solidarity. But realism plays a more important role in Moscow’s reasoning than anti-American hostility. READ MORE

NATO Deputy Secretary General highlights Chicago outcomes, praises reforms in trip to Georgia

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Ambassador Alexander Vershbow, NATO’s Deputy Secretary General, welcomed the progress Georgia is making in democratic reforms during a two-day visit there on 26-27 June. READ MORE

Russia Versus China

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Russia is seeking ways to halt unauthorized Chinese production of Russian jet fighters. This has proven very difficult, especially since Russia and China are supposed to be allies these days. Earlier this year the extent of the problem was made quite stark when China refused to buy Su-35 fighters from Russia if a "no unauthorized duplication" clause was included in the contract. The Chinese wanted to buy the Su-35s but were not willing to sign a binding agreement to not copy the Russian design. READ MORE

Nina Shtanski: “We Don’t Negotiate with Moldova on the Status of Transnistria or Any Other Political Constructions”

By Artiom Buzila

In Germany, in the city of Rottach-Egern, another round of multilateral talks was held with the participation of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova Vlad Filatov and the President of non-recognized Transnistria Moldovan Republic (TMR) Eugen Șevciuk, as well as European, American, Russian and Ukrainian intermediaries. The parties, involved into solution of a long-standing Transnistria conflict, including western ones, expressed satisfaction with establishment of the dialogue between official Kishinev and Tiraspol. “Politcom.Ru” talked to the TRM Foreign Affairs Minister Nina Shtanski on the prospects of Transnistria conflict regulation and on new foreign doctrine of Transnistrian government. READ MORE

Bankers and the neuroscience of greed

By Ian Robertson

The unconstrained power of bankers acts like a drug on their brains' reward systems, creating insatiable appetites READ MORE

Moscow Fears Shift in Central Asia’s Strategic Balance Post-2014

By Roger McDermott

Moscow has reacted with concern after learning about the ongoing talks between Washington and three Central Asian countries aimed at agreeing on the handover of equipment linked to the NATO drawdown in Afghanistan. Russian officials fear that such equipment donations to the Armed Forces in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan not only go way beyond the existing arrangements to assist in reverse transit using the Northern Distribution Network (NDN) but could upset the strategic balance in Central Asia post-2014. In diplomatic circles in Moscow, this development is portrayed as entirely unacceptable to Russia and may indicate a worsening in US-Russian relations. A potential diplomatic crisis between Washington and Moscow is brewing precisely in this area due to a number of inter-related factors, but with President Vladimir Putin under pressure domestically he may choose to use this at some stage to boost his image at home by confronting the United States more directly. READ MORE

The country is in mourning - but Ablyazov rejoices – this is his wonderful opportunity for personal PR

By Alina Kantor

There is a certain type of politics - I call them homo-abscessus (translated from Latin - the man-abscess), which form their own political baggage exclusively on black news. And in the absence of those make every effort for the black news to come. READ MORE

Uzbekistan Snubs SCO Peace Mission 2012

By Roger McDermott

Uzbekistan is often cast as a reluctant or difficult member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) or the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), because of its consistent opposition to new initiatives in either body and relentless prudence concerning its participation in multilateral military exercises. Yet, the complex policymaking in Tashkent that produces such thorny approaches to security issues is also frequently refracted through the Russian media in such a way as to distort its purposes or deeper considerations. Once again, behind the colorful official claims of success surrounding the latest SCO Peace Mission exercise, Tashkent exposed the disunity in the organization by refusing to participate (Interfax, June 9). READ MORE

Economic benefits from UK nuclear plans

A report for EDF Energy has put some figures on the benefits to the UK economy that could flow from the company's plans for new nuclear power plants. READ MORE

Russian And Belarusian Nuclear Projects Have To Ensure Nuclear And Radiation Safety, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Says

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Maximum effort is required to ensure that neighbouring countries follow the rules for nuclear and radiation safety when implementing their nuclear projects, also that they strictly comply with international environmental requirements, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Audronius Ažubalis said during the meeting of representatives of Lithuanian institutions at the Foreign Ministry on June 27. The meeting discussed issues related to safety of the nuclear projects that are implemented at the Lithuanian state borders, in Russia’s Kaliningrad region and Belarus. READ MORE