Vilnius is hosting the Baltic Development Forum and the Baltic Sea States Summit. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso is expected to meet on Wednesday with regional representatives, including the prime ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland and Norway.

• June 2, 2010

Russia needs to modernize its economy and shun protectionism to gain access to Western investment, the European Union said Tuesday

• June 2, 2010

Afghan security forces patrol ahead of Wednesday's start of a three-day peace conference in Kabul. KABUL—The Afghan government kicks off a national assembly in Kabul Wednesday, the first in a string of events that officials hope will chart a path to reconciliation with insurgents, seize the political initiative from the Taliban and lay the groundwork for...

• June 2, 2010

President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso has said that the issue of financial instruments to the construction of the Visaginas nuclear power plant will be considered as soon as the construction project is presented.

• June 2, 2010

Russia and the Ukraine got an agreement on nuclear fuel supply for the local atomic plants this year.

• June 2, 2010

Turkey’s importance to the EU should not be underestimated
Turkey’s unique geopolitical position, straddling both Europe and Asia (encompassing its proximity in the Middle East, Caucuses, Balkans, and Black & Caspian Sea regions specifically), has placed the country into a very advantageous position amongst all actors that are involved in any of these areas. Its longstanding membership in NATO and the Council of Europe, in addition to its historical military partnership with Israel, further underscores the fact that Turkey has long been, and continues to be, a partner of strategic importance to the West. Furthermore, with no end in sight to Europe’s reliance on imported Eurasian and Russian gas supplies, Turkey’s territory is the crossroads for the planned NABUCCO gas pipeline, which intends to decrease European reliance on Russian gas.

• June 2, 2010

Despite seemingly encouraging words about freedom of speech from Vladimir Putin, the Prime Minister, Russian opposition activists were again beaten and detained when they tried to hold peaceful protests across the country yesterday.

• June 1, 2010

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Commission (EC) have not changed their position, and continue to support Latvia's chosen economic program based on preserving the current valuation of the national currency and gaining entry to the eurozone, LETA was informed by the IMF representative office in Latvia.

• June 1, 2010