The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation: The Tashkent Summit Generates More Questions than Answers (275 Kb)
EGF Editorial
On June 11-12 2010 the member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) held their annual Summit in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, under the auspices of the (rotational) Uzbek presidency. The previous SCO Summit was held in 2009 in Yekaterinburg, Russia, where the agenda of the member states was dominated by the search for the right exit strategies out of the global economic-financial crisis, particularly those that would serve to minimise its nefarious consequences upon SCO members. In Tashkent, the agenda of SCO member country leaders was dominated by the following issues:
The Tanks of August
The publication of this collection of essays coincides with the second anniversary of the armed conflict between Russia and Georgia on August 8-12, 2009. The first essay looks into the transformation of the Georgian armed forces under President Mikhail Saakashvili and details Tbilisi’s key preparations for the war.
EGF Forum Outlook: Assessing Gazprom’s Next Movements (86 Kb)
In a recent briefing on Russia, this Forum expressed the view that Moscow is becoming an increasingly assertive regional player in the wider Black and Caspian Sea (BCS) basin and that energy remains a key Russian priority for the region. We commented in that report that the Russian state-controlled energy holding, Gazprom, provided Moscow with a significant instrument to exercise power in the region. READ MORE
The Russian–Iranian Relations after the UNSC (144 Kb)
Key Positions
Russian Geopolitical Power in the Black and Caspian Seas Region: Implications for Turkey and the World (164 Kb)
Exerting influence in the wider Black and Caspian Seas region is becoming a crucial element in Russia’s current geopolitical strategy. Energy and security are two of Moscow’s primary concerns relating to the region. Turkey, the EU, and the United States, as well as international energy companies will have to be aware of the operational instruments which Moscow has been deploying as part of its geopolitical strategy in the region, which include:
External Relations Briefing: Russian-Jordanian Relations (59 Kb)
Jordan has always been a moderate monarchy and, taking into account the role of the British Empire in the foundation of the Hashemite Kingdom, one of the most pro-Western regimes in the Arab East. Jordan’s well-established relations with Russia, which have become even closer and warmer during the last decade, might therefore seem surprising. However, in the Middle East, perhaps even more than in any geopolitical regions, neither generalizations nor stereotypes are able to reflect complex realities. Moscow and Amman have a number of reasons to preserve and cultivate their cooperation
Securing Energy and Building Regional Security: EU-Turkey Cooperation in the Black and Caspian Seas Basin (142 Kb)
Turkey’s importance to the EU should not be underestimated
The Reemergence of Russian Geopolitical Power in the Black and Caspian Seas Region: Implications for Turkey and the Wider Power Balances (254 Kb)
Energy and security: Russia’s new obsession with the wider Black Sea region Revived by the economic recovery it has witnessed in recent years, and not necessarily weakened by the global financial crisis, Russia is demonstrating itself to be an increasingly assertive (political and economic) force in the wider-Black and Caspian Seas (BCS) basin. Exerting influence in the BCS region is a crucial element in the Russian geopolitical strategy, given the region’s importance both as an energy producer as well as its vitality as a primary corridor for the transit of oil and gas to international markets.
European Parliament Urges EU Engagement in Karabakh
Today, the European Parliament renewed its commitment to greater engagement by the European Union in the South Caucasus as it adopted a new resolution on EU policy in the region [1]. This is the first resolution dedicated to the South Caucasus countries since the launch, in 2009, of the EU’s landmark Eastern Partnership policy [2].
The EU-Russia Energy Partnership: The Future of the Energy Charter (..and the Debate over the Third Package) (162 Kb)
Summary of Panel I: The Future of the Energy Charter and the Debate over the Third Package
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