Новости за 11.12.2015

Energy Geopolitics are Back in Europe

In European capitals, an increasingly assertive Russia has triggered renewed concerns related to the security of EU gas supplies. EU leaders have vivid memories of January 2009 when Russian gas supplies were cut for 13 days, affecting a total of 16 EU member states. Clearly, the ongoing Ukraine crisis has further politicized Russian energy trade with Europe, and added a geopolitical dimension to already strained Eurasian gas relations. In short, European... Читать дальше...

At the end of September, Russia began conducting air strikes in Syria, ostensibly to combat terrorist groups. The strikes constitute Russia’s biggest intervention in the Middle East in decades. Its unanticipated military foray into Syria has transformed the civil war there into a proxy U.S.-Russian conflict and has raised the stakes in the ongoing standoff between Moscow and Washington. It has also succeeded in diverting attention away from Russia’s destabilization of Ukraine, making it impossible... Читать дальше...

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits India this week at a time of transition for Asia's leading powers. First, India has surpassed China as the world's fastest-growing major economy, putting it in pole position as Asia's most dynamic growth market. Second, Japan has returned to economic growth and operates under new laws making it easier to pursue military cooperation with like-minded nations such as India. Third, the strategic map of Eurasia is being redrawn as China "goes West," developing... Читать дальше...

Transatlantic Take

It was German Chancellor Angela Merkel who “stepped in” to keep Europe together when “not once or twice but three times this year there has been reason to wonder whether Europe could continue to exist,” says the TIME article that names her person of the year. In the course of the decade that Angela Merkel has governed Germany, the largest EU member state but long-time “political pygmy” has taken on increasing responsibility as a leader in Europe and internationally.