Issue # 72
09/14/2015
The foreign ministers of the Normandy Four countries, including Germany, France, Ukraine and Russia, met in Berlin on 12 September 2015. According to an Interfax-Ukraine report, all participants in the meeting agreed that it was necessary to reach and implement an agreement on the withdrawal of light and heavy weapons from the line of contact as soon as possible. READ MORE

• September 14, 2015

Russia called on Friday for military-to-military cooperation with the United States to avert "unintended incidents" as it stages navy exercises off the coast of Syria, where U.S. officials believe Moscow is building up forces to protect President Bashar al-Assad.

• September 11, 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 10, 2015

A China unit of U.S. tech giant Apple Inc (AAPL.O) underpaid taxes in 2013 by 452 million yuan ($71 million), according to a report from the country's finance ministry, which comes as China toughens its stance on tax payments by foreign firms.

• September 10, 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

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

The United States has asked Greece to deny Russia the use of its airspace for supply flights to Syria, a Greek official said on Monday, after Washington told Moscow it was deeply concerned by reports of a Russian military build up in Syria.

• September 7, 2015