Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin agreed Friday to enhance energy cooperation between the two countries, sharing the view that bilateral economic ties have been deepening recently, the Foreign Ministry said.

• October 15, 2011

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has written a letter to Ukraine’s president warning that bilateral relations – now dominated by free-trade talks – could be damaged by the “political” prosecution of opposition politician Yulia Tymoshenko.

• October 15, 2011

Cooperation in the oil and gas sector constitutes a major part of China-Russia economic relations, but it is not everything. While strengthening their energy cooperation, Chinese and Russian economic managers are now exploring new fields to diversify their economic ties and optimize the trade structure.

• October 14, 2011

Vladimir Putin this week made probably his last trip to China as Russian prime minister (he will likely be president next year), signing no fewer than 16 new accords on bilateral cooperation, including US$7 billion in new investment agreements.

• October 13, 2011

Russia and Belarus signed a contract Tuesday on the construction of the first nuclear power plant in Belarus, local media reported.

• October 12, 2011

Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said on Wednesday that he expected a "just and acceptable" compromise to be worked out with Russia soon over the price of Russian gas.

• October 12, 2011

Issue 8: August-September 2011

A Snapshot of Key Developments in the External Relations of the Russian Gas Sector
Key points:

• Gazprom partners raided by European Commission Anti-trust Inspectors
• The dispute between Moscow and Kiev continues. Ukraine knows that it has a weak bargaining position and is in no hurry to make concessions to Russia
• Prime Minister Vladimir Putin launched the first string of Nord Stream, meaning Ukraine is now in danger of losing its status as the main transit country for Russia’s European gas exports
• Gazprom has signed roadmap with South Korea's Kogas for the construction of a pipeline from Vladivostok to South Korea
• Gazprom may suspend its project in Nigeria because of the lack of a law governing the oil and gas industry, although experts say Gazprom may have lost interest in this project because of potential difficulties in selling Nigerian gas
• Gazprom is looking to acquire two state-owned oil and gas companies in Kyrgyzstan
• The Gazprom affiliate Vemex has acquired a 51% stake in RSP Energy, marking the first time a Gazprom Group company will sell gas and electricity to Czech households
• Gazprom has signed a legally-binding agreement with its European partners on the implementation of the South Stream project, but has attracted criticism from the EU. According to Russian sources, EU Energy Commissioner, Guenther Oettinger, views South Stream as an attempt by Moscow to derail the ‘Southern Corridor’ gas supply diversification concept
• In line with new oil production projects in the region, Gazprom Neft is considering the construction of a new oil refinery near Murmansk
• Gazprom expects a doubling of the Mineral Extraction Tax by 2013.

• October 12, 2011

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko agreed on Tuesday that Russia should build the country's first, $9 billion nuclear power station.

• October 11, 2011