Pro-Russian leaders in Crimea made final preparations on Saturday for a referendum widely expected to transfer control of the Black Sea region from Ukraine to Moscow, despite an outcry and threat of sanctions from the West.

• March 15, 2014

Jack Sharples, EGF Associate Researcher and Andrew Judge

Do such organisations exist beyond the ‘self fulfilling prophecy’ level? Amidst the current tensions about Russian military deployment in Crimea, there has been considerable speculation in the European and American media about the security of Russian gas supplies to the EU. Such speculation is generated by a combination of concerns over the level of dependency on Russian gas imports faced by several EU member states and fears that the Russian government considers gas exports to be an ‘energy weapon’ that can be deployed against its former Soviet neighbours. This short article will address the likelihood of a suspension of Russian gas supplies to Ukraine and the impact of such a suspension on EU gas imports. READ MORE

• March 15, 2014

Growing tension between the West and Russia ahead of Ukraine's weekend referendum in Crimea pushed stocks on major world markets down on Friday and ramped up the flight into safe-haven gold and the yen.

• March 14, 2014

The Philippines has agreed to allow the United States access to its military bases under a new security deal being negotiated by the two allies, amid mounting concern over China's increasing assertiveness in the disputed waters of the South China Sea.

• March 14, 2014

The Philippines is planning another challenge of a Chinese naval blockade of a disputed shoal in the South China Sea by sending civilian ships with supplies to its troops stationed there, a senior military official said on Thursday.

• March 14, 2014

U.S. stocks dropped on Thursday on rising tension in Ukraine, which helped erase earlier gains spurred by better-than-expected data on retail sales and the labor market.

• March 13, 2014

U.S. President Barack Obama and European Union leaders will promise to remove all tariffs on bilateral trade at their summit on March 26, an ambitious step towards the world's largest free-trade deal, according to a draft statement seen by Reuters.

• March 13, 2014

The International Monetary Fund has made good progress in its fact-finding mission in Kiev and will then discuss Ukraine's economic situation with IMF management, a fund spokesman said on Thursday.

• March 13, 2014