U.S : Pipeline decision makes great contribution to Southern Gas Corridor development
The United States sees the importance of the Southern Gas Corridor, said in statement of Acting Deputy Spokesperson of Department of State Patrick Ventrell. READ MORE
NATO and Europeans
Back in 2011 the NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen issued a public warning, noting that the aggregate reductions in military spending in Europe totaled USD 45 billion, which is jeopardizing the viability of the Alliance and the US-European relations. Since then, bogged down in the Afghan war and faced with the economic downturn and the need to reduce budget deficits, military spending of the EU countries decreased even more. The U.S. share of total expenditures NATO has grown from 63% in 2001 to almost 75% today. Military budgets of the Alliance from 2009 to 2013 declined by about 8.5%, and tend to decrease in the future. If in 2009 the total level of defense spending in Europe amounted to USD 256 billion, in 2013 - USD 234,3 billion of the 28 NATO countries only the United States, Britain and Greece held its own requirements on the amount of military spending at 2% of GDP. Even Britain and France were forced to go on ways to reduce defense appropriations. As a result, last year for the first time Asian military spending exceeded European. READ MORE
EU-US trade negotiations must be transparent
The negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the European Union and the United States must be opened up for public scrutiny, aruges Natacha Cingotti. Natacha Cingotti is corporate campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe. READ MORE
Obama visit: Why U.S. now needs Germany more than ever
U.S. President John F. Kennedy's "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech delivered 50 years ago was well received by more than 100,000 Germans hopeful for America's steadfast support as Berlin came to symbolize one of the Cold War's main battlegrounds. As presidential candidate in the summer of 2008, Barack Obama had nearly twice that number of optimistic onlookers at Berlin's Victory Column who eagerly anticipated a new American outlook on questions ranging from climate change to nuclear disarmament. READ MORE
East in the European Union Context
Annual Summits of the states of Central and Eastern Europe gather the leaders of the countries of the region, which has the potential of not only consolidating role, but also to help Europe to find its place in the world after crisis. Such meetings are the only consultation forum of regional character, uniting the states located between Baltic Sea, Black Sea and the Adriatic, by this independently of that whether they are NATO, European Union, Euro zone or not. That is why they represent important international events, for example, two years ago in Warsaw, where 20 heads of the states were present. The US President Barak Obama was an honorable guest. READ MORE
US, European Union to Start New Trade Pact Talks
The United States and European Union say they are starting talks on a new trans-Atlantic free trade agreement. READ MORE
Geopolitical Journey: The Search for Belonging and Ballistic Missile Defense in Romania
During the Cold War, Romania confused all of us. Long after brutality in other communist countries declined, Romania remained a state that employed levels of violence best compared to North Korea today. Nicolae Ceausescu, referred to by admirers as the Genius of the Carpathians, ruled Romania with a ruthless irrationality. Government policies left the country cold and dark, and everyday items readily available just a few kilometers south in Bulgaria were rarities in Romania. At the same time -- and this was the paradox -- Romania was hostile and uncooperative with the Soviets. Bucharest refused to submit to Moscow, and this did not compute for many of us. Resistance to Soviet power, in our minds, meant liberalization, like what we saw in Hungary and Czechoslovakia. But not in Romania; Romania played a different game. READ MORE
Obama, Xi summit could help define U.S.-China relationship for years to come
President Obama and his new Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, will retreat to the California desert this weekend for an unusual series of meetings that could help define one of the world’s most important relationships for years to come. READ MORE
NATO Starts Security Drills in the Baltics
NATO countries start on Monday large-scale security cooperation exercises on the territory of the former Soviet republics in the Baltic region, the Estonian military said. READ MORE
NATO drone project set to continue
Pulling the plug on Germany's Euro Hawk project won't have consequences for NATO's surveillance program using "Global Hawk" models. But critics argue a joint European drone project would have been better. READ MORE
