Iran agreed to attend talks with the United States and other world powers on the Islamic Republic's nuclear program, provided negotiations take place in neighboring Turkey, officials said Sunday. The offer likely was meant to put diplomatic pressure on the U.S. and its allies.

• November 8, 2010

November 2010

Key positions:

• David Cameron’s forceful remarks over the summer on Turkey’s stagnant accession talks have hit a nerve in some circles in Brussels. Criticism of fellow German and French members of the EU by the prime minister on bias and playing to xenophobic political moods has addressed the elephant in the room over Turkey’s much debated membership application. Brussels is predicted to endorse the recent referendum results from Turkey as a positive step in its long standing bid to join the EU.

• A Turkish court struck down the headscarf ban in public universities recently, but no major social disturbances have been reported. The lack of social unrest over such a divisive issue seems to further demonstrate that Turkey is enshrining the values of a law based democratic society where sensitive political issues are settled in the courts and at the ballot box rather than in the streets. Meanwhile the Ergenekon trial (Turkey’s new national coup plot) has faded from national attention as the Istanbul prosecutor’s office has declined to pursue the case citing lack of verifiable evidence.

• The Turkish National Petroleum Corporation has recently won two major contracts in developing the two largest Iraqi gas fields, further increasing Turkey’s interests in its neighbour. This has not alleviated some concern in the business sector that warns a ballooning trade deficit over the past year has dire consequences for the long-term future of business growth.

• November 8, 2010

Azerbaijan may consider possibility of creating a joint venture producing oil and gas equipment in Kazakhstan, the Azerbaijani Industry and Energy Minister Natig Aliyev said in an interview with Trend on the results of the Azerbaijani-Kazakh intergovernmental commission's seventh meeting held in Astana.

• November 7, 2010

Barack Obama has called on the Senate to approve a landmark nuclear weapons deal with Russia before a newly elected crop of Republicans take office in January.

• November 5, 2010

The Bulgarian Energy Holding and Gazprom have announced the start of a tender to select a company to carry out a preliminary investment study for the construction of the South Stream gas pipeline on Bulgarian territory.

• November 5, 2010

With the the globalization of the energy sector and the opening of energy markets, energy supply is important to Estonia in an international context, especially so for state company Eesti Energy.

• November 4, 2010

President Dmitry Medvedev arrived in Vietnam Saturday for a visit that will see Russia sign a multi-billion-euro nuclear power plant deal with the former Soviet-era Communist ally.

• November 4, 2010

Western powers' strong new sanctions on Iran have failed to push Tehran's leaders toward compromise on their disputed nuclear program, a senior European diplomat said on Tuesday.

• November 3, 2010