Russia and Ukraine are close to reaching an agreement on the clearance of Black Sea Fleet (BSF) vessel movements outside their bases, the Ukrainian website zn.ua reported on March 2, citing sources familiar with the talks.

• March 13, 2013

Jihadi groups in Syria could have been behind last month’s attempted assassination of opposition leaders at a Turkish border crossing, according to a leading analyst.

• March 13, 2013

The Ministry of Energy & Coal Industry of Ukraine informs that Stavitsky was received by First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yagub Eyubov, met with Industry & Energy Minister Natig Aliev, participated in a meeting with involvement of representatives of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) and Azerenerji OJSC.

• March 13, 2013

ISSUE # 08
03/11/2013
On 6 March 2013, the Supreme Administrative Court of Ukraine decided to strip ex- Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko's lawyer and opposition Fatherland faction MP, Serhiy Vlasenko, of his seat in parliament. In particular, the court ruled that Vlasenko had been illegally combining his jobs as a lawyer and an MP. READ MORE

• March 13, 2013

Kazakhstan does not exclude the possibility of transporting its oil through the new Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway to the Persian Gulf, the general director of KazTransOil JSC Kairgeldy Kabyldin told Trend.

• March 12, 2013

The lease of the Ukrainian gas transportation system (GTS) to Russia’s gas monopoly Gazprom jeopardizes national interests of Ukraine, independent energy expert Volodymyr Saprykin said on air of Channel 5.

• March 12, 2013

Pakistan risks ending up on the wrong side of American sanctions on doing business with Iran, said a leading daily Tuesday.

• March 12, 2013

Insights into Turkish Domestic and International Politics during 16-28 February 2013
By John VanPool, EGF Turkey and Black Sea Regional Analyst

Key Points:

• Negotiations over constitutional reform continue, with an agreement over the Chief of the General staff having been reached.
• AKP negotiators continue to push for a more powerful presidency, but opposition parties fear a lack of legislative and judicial checks on the office.
• Talks continue between the government and PKK leader Ocalan, though decades of conflict make a political solution remote in the short-term.
• A tense standoff in northern Syria between Kurdish and Arab fighters resembles similar conflicts for Kurdish minorities in other countries around the region. Ankara hopes that an agreement can be reached to keep northern Syria from becoming a PKK safe haven.
• An Israel-Turkey pipeline is impossible without Erdogan’s permission. Turkish energy firms specify their commitments in Iraq while trying to navigate the impasse between Erbil and Baghdad.

• March 12, 2013