China has fended off the major risks to its financial system while its economic prospects remain positive, Premier Li Keqiang said on Wednesday, as he tried to reassure global markets that Beijing can keep its economy on track and stock markets in check.

• September 9, 2015

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday that the euro zone economy was in better shape than a year ago and said reform efforts by countries like Spain and Ireland had paid off.

• September 9, 2015

Russia has started to build a huge military base housing ammunition depots and barracks for several thousand soldiers near the Ukrainian border, a project that suggests the Kremlin is digging in for a prolonged stand-off with Kiev.

• September 9, 2015

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his top economic team on Tuesday assured a group of billionaires that India could withstand global turbulence and China's economic slowdown, then asked them to open their wallets.

• September 8, 2015

Indications of increased Russian involvement in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad are prompting a reassessment in Israel about how to handle fall-out from the conflict without risking a clash with Moscow.

• September 8, 2015

Syria's information minister denied on Tuesday reports of a Russian military buildup in his country, saying there were no Russian combat forces fighting alongside the army against mainly Islamist insurgents.

• September 8, 2015

A Snapshot of Key Developments in the External Relations of the Russian Gas Sector
By Dr Jack Sharples, EGF Associate Researcher on the external dimensions of Russian gas and Lecturer in Energy Politics at the European University of St Petersburg

• Gazprom and the EU: Gazprom-PGNiG gas price talks at ‘an advanced stage’; Gazprom and Eni pledge to continue close cooperation; Calm before the storm: Gazprom Deputy Chairman meets EU Competition Commissioner, with Gazprom due to reply to EU antimonopoly ‘Statement of Objections’ by the 28th of September
• Nord Stream: OMV CEO Seele confident of EU approval for Nord Stream II, meets with Gazprom CEO Miller to discuss joint venture for the project
• Turkish Stream: Stop and go – Russia and Turkey continue trading proposals, but real progress not expected until formation of new Turkish government in November; SE European Foreign Ministers could meet in September to discuss the ‘Tesla’ extension to Turkish Stream
• Ukraine: EU Commissioner for Energy Union meets with Ukrainian Energy Minister and Naftogaz CEO, and plans meeting with Russian Energy Minister in September ahead of next round of trilateral talks; Gazprom CEO expresses concerns over Naftogaz winter gas storage
• Belarus: Gazprom begins construction of Gazprom Centre in Minsk, set to be ‘the tallest building in Belarus’
• Asia: Shell participation in Sakhalin-III in doubt as US imposes sanctions on the project; Gazprom reports ‘good dynamics’ in ongoing negotiations with PetroChina and CNPC over pipeline deliveries of Russian gas to China, despite concerns over the commercial viability of the projects
• Other: Gazprom’s annual gas production could reach record low in 2015, as the company also cuts its sales price forecast

• September 8, 2015

Joining the dots and making sense of the key Geopolitical developments in Europe, Eurasia and MENA
By George Vlad NICULESCU, Head of Research, European Geopolitical Forum

• America’s acquiescence to Russian military involvement in Syria may reflect a fundamental change in US regional strategy in the Middle East.
• The Russian bet on Syria makes a broad-based political compromise on the governance of post-conflict Syria more necessary than ever.
• The stalemate in implementing Minsk 2 epitomizes the Ukrainian Donbas dilemma: bring Donetsk and Luhansk back into the fold of a federal state, or keep them out, as contested territories.
• The Iranian nuclear deal has brought both good and bad news, while Middle Eastern geopolitics is in full swing.
• The Nord Stream 2 corporate agreement: an interesting business opportunity likely to be mired with geopolitical concerns in Central-Eastern Europe and beyond.

• September 8, 2015