Russia Plans Increased Energy Exports
Senior Russian officials have made clear that the country’s energy policies will continue to evolve around the nexus of ambitious export plans. The government pledged to make the country’s gas exports more flexible. Russia’s total gas exports will include 10 percent of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by 2020 and 15 percent by 2030, Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, announced on September 17. The global demand for hydrocarbons will be increasing in the next decade according to Putin. READ MORE
BRIC Military Modernization and the New Global Defense Balance (Part 1 of 2)
The message promoted by foreign policy gurus in recent years is that the American moment is over and a new global balance is emerging; one where power is no longer concentrated in Washington but spread among several different countries. The U.S. will continue to retain a prominent position at the top of the global food chain we are told, but no longer will there be the sense of American worldwide hegemony. Instead the emerging nations of Brazil, Russia, India and China (the so-called “BRICs”) will assume their rightful place as great powers and in the process create a new multi-polar world. READ MORE
Putin Looks Sour Loser On Nabucco
Russia seems to have lost its lobbying battle in Europe for its South Stream pipeline carrying gas and against rival Nabucco, which is planned to run from Azerbaijan via Turkey to the European markets. At present, Moscow seeks as a last resort to negate the availability of gas supplies to the Nabucco project in the Caspian basin. READ MORE
A Strategic Opportunity for Ukraine
There are neighborhoods in Kyiv one might easily mistake for Paris, London, or New York: intricately decorated Victorian apartment buildings and townhouses mingle with sidewalk cafes, small parks and monuments, mid-century office blocks, and glass-fronted modern office towers. And stretching skyward from the crests of Kyiv’s famous seven hills are its unmistakably Slavic monuments—the onion domes and golden crosses of St. Michael’s and St. Sophia’s cathedrals, and the Caves Monastery. READ MORE
Project with Unclear Fate
The question on the fate of the “South Stream” pipeline remains one of the key ones for Russian policy within the gas sphere. The alternative European “Nabucco” project remains its competitor; the issue, which pipeline will be constructed, can be solved already by the end of this year (the beginning of the accomplishment of one project can make another one unclaimed). At the moment the organizers of the both projects hold tensed negotiations with the Parties involved. In case of the “South Stream” we are talking about transit states, among which Bulgaria is the one which is potentially able to play the kind of role not only for Russia-Italian project, but also for the “Nabucco”. READ MORE
Ukraine May Give Russia Joint Control of Pipe to Cut Gas Prices
Ukraine is willing to give Russia joint control of a pipeline to southeastern Europe in exchange for access to natural gas supplies, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said as the countries negotiate a gas venture. READ MORE
The Black Sea Need Not Be a Black Spot
The Black Sea is a cradle of civilization, trade and cultures, but today it is also a region of unresolved conflicts, porous borders and rivalries. READ MORE
History of Russian-Polish Relations
Polish history is closely intertwined with the history of Russia. Peaceful periods between the two countries were interspersed by frequent armed conflicts. READ MORE
Customs Union Project Shows Moscow's Power Deficit
At the beginning of July, Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus signed a number of protocols establishing a customs union between the three countries. The union, scheduled to be fully operational in January 2012, will create a single common market of about 170 million people and represents the latest of several attempts by Moscow to create an effective trade bloc with its newly independent neighbors since the break-up of the Soviet Union. In addition to the economic ties maintained through the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Russia first committed to a union with Belarus in 1994. READ MORE
Superpower Ambitions Weaken Russia
Over the past decade, Russia has made repeated attempts to demonstrate its growing power to the world. There are two main objectives behind these attempts: to obtain international recognition as a superpower and to coerce other states into partnership. Both goals are based on the political elite’s belief that Russia should be included on that list a priori by virtue of its huge territory, nuclear arsenal and economic potential. READ MORE
