Archive for 2009/01 :

Everyone a loser in Ukraine-Russia dispute – except EU energy policy

Posted by Michael Berendt on 25/01/09

The gas is flowing again. The deal signed between Ukraine’s prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko and Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Moscow on January 21 should at last provide some respite for all those who have suffered severe hardship from the suspension of gas supplier in recent weeks.
In the short term everyone has been a loser from [...]

Troubled year ahead for the euro?

Posted by Michael Berendt on 19/01/09

On January 16 the euro replaced the koruna as the official currency of Slovakia, bringing to sixteen the number of countries of the eurozone.  It was the first country in the former Soviet bloc to adopt the single currency – and just 20 years after the Fall of the Wall.  What a great way to [...]

Russia – Ukraine gas dispute: business or politics?

Posted by Michael Berendt on 06/01/09

Is it business or politics? The official EU line is that the confrontation between Russia and the Ukraine on gas supplies is a commercial dispute which does not call for political intervention.  This is far removed from the accusations of “pipeline politics” directed at Russia during the 2006 dispute.
Requests by the parties for the EU [...]

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Blogging commentary on current events from the perspective of someone who has been closely involved with the policies, the policy-makers and the whole complex network of people who make the process of European integration so exciting and absorbing. more.



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