A collection of 156 posts
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
Over two hundred Russian diplomats have been sent home from countries in Europe this week, in response to scenes of atrocities in the Kiev suburb of Bucha, in eastern Ukraine. The number of expelled Russian envoys from European states now totals 325, representing “one of the biggest diplomatic breakdowns of
Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewin said on Monday that a significant recession in Germany would be “almost inevitable” if imports of Russian oil and natural gas were stopped. German banks are expecting the country’s GDP growth to slow to 2% in 2022 from 2.7% in 2021, in the
Efforts to reduce dependency upon Russian sources of energy within countries in Central and Eastern Europe have taken on a new urgency following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine over three weeks ago. Bulgaria’s Deputy Prime Minister Asen Vassilev says Bulgaria will not renew its contract with Gazprom when the
The European Commission said it planned to cut its reliance on fossil fuels from Russia by 2030, reducing dependence on Russian sources of energy by two-thirds by the end of the year. But it turned out there will be no ban on imports of Russian oil and gas imports to
French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to Russia’s President Vladimir Putin by telephone for one-and-a-half hours on Thursday. He told his Russian counterpart that he was making a “major mistake” by continuing his Ukraine offensive and that Moscow would remain isolated and under sanctions for a long time. Speaking to
On early Friday, Al Jazeera reported that Russian forces had sent missiles into Kyiv and other locations in Ukraine. Stating that Putin “must and will fail”, the European Union has agreed severe sanctions on Russia. Namely, this means the EU will freeze Russian assets within the Union. Also, Russian banks’
Following Russia’s attack on Ukraine on Thursday morning, Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania all invoked the NATO alliance’s Article 4, which obliges all 30 NATO members to hold a consultation when “the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the parties is threatened”. Explaining the rationale
As the stand-off between Russia and Ukraine continues, for countries within Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) it has spurred a flurry of activity, including troop movements among members of the NATO alliance to bolster their defenses. The Baltic News Network writes that Lithuania’s Ministry of Defense confirmed that a
There were almost 6.6 million female scientists and engineers in the EU in 2020, which represented a year-on-year rise of 254,500, according to a new report by Eurostat. Women now account for 41% of total employment in science and engineering, the EU official statistics office added. Among the
The Latvian Defence Ministry has revealed that 400 US troops, 100 units of military vehicles and 22 US Apache helicopters will arrive to the Baltic country by Wednesday to take part in an international military drill. Large numbers of NATO troops will also arrive into the Central and Eastern Europe
French Trade Minister Franck Riester said the EU will resolutely back Lithuania in its escalating trade war with China, on Sunday, Euractiv reported. Riester underlined that the small Baltic nation was “a victim of coercion from Beijing” after meeting his opposites numbers in Marseille. As the current holder of the
Poland is predicted to have the highest level of inflation of 6.8% in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) – and the EU as a whole – this year, according to a new European Commission (EC) forecast. The EC’s prediction for Poland is way over the average predicted rise in the
NATO has sent troops to Lithuania, which the country’s head of state says should be permanently stationed in the Baltic country. A rotating contingent of soldiers “would be the best boost to security and deterrence that NATO could provide – not only to Lithuania, but to the whole region”, President
The European Commission (EC) unveiled legislation designed to double Europe’s share of the semiconductor industry yesterday. The so-called Chips Act addresses supply-chain shortages in the EU’s tech sector. Having assigned EUR 11 billion for the package, the EU aims to raise EUR 43 billion overall and gain a