Albania may be about to announce the findings of exploratory fossil fuel drillings of such a magnitude that they will change Europe’s energy landscape, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama announced Tuesday. “The signs show that we may be close to a very important discovery of gas and oil underground,
Croatia is ready to enlarge the capacity of the Adria oil pipeline as part of a long-term energy cooperation agreement to transit oil to Hungary and Slovakia, the countries jointly announced. Adria, also known as the Yugoslav or JANAF, is a crude oil pipeline in Croatia, Serbia and Hungary, which
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced that banks, insurance companies, retail chains, energy firms, telcos and airlines in Hungary will have to pay a large proportion of what he called their “surplus profits” into two state funds in 2022 and 2023, on Wednesday. The money will be used to subsidise
Croatia is currently boosting its own gas security in preparation for next winter, Energy Minister Davor Filipovic announced. By 1 November, Croatia will have filled its only underground gas storage facility in Okoli, central Croatia, by up to 90%, Filipovic told state broadcaster HRT. Filipovic was speaking after a report
NATO will increase its number of forces in the Baltic sea if Sweden applies to join the defence alliance, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced on Thursday afternoon. The NATO chief told Swedish SVT News that although NATO does not intend to enter the conflict between Russia and Ukraine – and therefore
The Polish government’s Stop Russia Now advertising campaign arrived in Hungary on Wednesday, increasing speculation that the alliance between the two countries’ populist nationalist governments has reached breaking point over differences on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Of the Visegrad Four (V4) group, comprising Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary,
The combination of a rise in demand for renewable energy sources and supply-chain issues is causing problems for manufacturers in Czechia and other countries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Companies in Czechia cannot meet the increasingly high demand for renewables due to a shortfall in both materials and workers,
The European Commission (EC) may allow Hungary and Slovakia to opt out of the Russian oil embargo currently being drawn up, Reuters reports. The EU will on Tuesday finalise its sixth package of sanctions against Russia, and is aware of how dependent the two countries are on Russian crude oil,
NATO leaders will formulate plans to bolster its eastern flank across Central and Eastern Europe at a summit in Madrid in June, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced. Calling Russia’s invasion of Ukraine the “biggest security crisis in a generation”, Stoltenberg said “regardless of when, how, the war in Ukraine ends
Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić declared victory in the country’s general elections on Sunday night, as pollsters estimated that he would secure almost 60% of the national presidential vote. Vucic admitted that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had affected the campaign. However he added that Serbia has no plans
Hungary will now allow NATO troops to deploy into the west of the country, reversing an earlier stance of not allowing additional troops from the defence alliance other than its own to be stationed within its territory. Prime Minister Viktor Orban signed a decree to admit the NATO Response Force
Russia has issued a veiled threat to Poland and Romania not to get involved in its operation against Ukraine, writes Romania Insider, quoting a Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov who told Reuters that any country allowing Ukraine to access airports or airfields would be considered participants in the war.
Singapore is sometimes compared to Switzerland, for its tradition of taking neutral positions on international conflicts. However the Asian nation’s Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan issued a statement from Singapore yesterday, in response to the Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Central European Times publishes Balakrishnan’s comment in
The war in Ukraine is a further nail in the coffin of the Pax Americana. Donald Trump began the dismantling of the US-dominated world order and post-WWII security apparatus, and now the job is being completed by Joe Biden. After last year’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Western response – or
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has dissolved Parliament and called for a national ballot to be held on 3 April, just 18 months after forming his government on the back of a vote boycotted by the main opposition parties, Euractiv reported. Vucic urged Serbian voters “to take part in the election