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11/17/14 –  11/21/14

 

 

 

 

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President Vladimir Putin attended the G20 summit inBrisbane, Australia this weekend, where the conversationlargely focused on Russian aggression in Ukraine andinternational sanctions. Putin was threatened with additionalsanctions if Russia does not withdraw troops and weaponsfrom southeastern Ukraine, with some leaders evenreferencing a potential frozen conflict in the region. Putin

ended up leaving the conference early.

Reuters Moscow Times 

Turkish authorities announced that they will proceed withthe controversial redevelopment of Istanbul’s Gezi Park, the

site of widespread anti-government protests in 2013. The plan costs $5.4 million and provides for the reconstructionof an Ottoman-era army barracks on the site. Themunicipality, governed by the ruling AKP party, clarifiedthat the plan would be subject to a pending court ruling and put to a referendum. 

Today’s Zaman Al Jazeera 

American Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Kyiv onThursday to meet with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.While there, Biden announced that the U.S. would increasethe amount of non-lethal aid that it would provide to Ukraine.Among the new provisions will be the first Humvees, andradar units that can detect enemy mortars. The trip was madea day after the American National Security Councilannounced the detection of Russian MiG-31 fighter jets alongUkraine’s eastern border. 

Reuters Washington Post 

In Tbilisi last weekend, approximately 30,000 Georgians protested the country’s policy towards Russia and Russia’s

support of separatists in two breakaway regions, SouthOssetia and Abkhazia. Opponents of the measure, supported by former president Mikheil Saakashvili’s party, United National Movement, have argued that the current politicalcoalition, the Georgian Dream, has not confronted whatappears to be creeping Russian annexation of the two

regions.Deutsche Welle RFE/RL 

The Armenian government launched an online portal this weekaimed at helping Armenian citizens living abroad to returnhome. The site, called tundarc.am (literally “back to home”),will provide all necessary information regarding proceduresfor returning back to Armenia, including receiving answers toquestions directly from Armenian officials. Approximately

2,000 Armenians have returned to the country in the last year.

Armenpress Arka 

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Polish PresidentBronislaw Komorowski met with Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti on Thursday in Chisinau. The three leadersdiscussed the upcoming Moldovan elections, addressingfears that Russia may try to meddle in the outcome, as wellas the current situation in southeastern Ukraine. Themeeting has been seen as a boost to Moldova’s pro-Western political parties, which currently have a slight lead in the polls. 

 News.pl ABC 

Charter 97Belta

The Co-Chair of the Minsk Group expressed their concernat the lack of humanitarian access to the crash site of theArmenian helicopter that was downed by Azerbaijaniforces last week. The wreckage of the helicopter lies inheavily mined area of neutral territory on the Line ofContact. “We call on the sides to cease firing the vicinityof the crash site and facilitate the demining of the areasurrounding the site,” the statement said.

ITAR-TASS  Tred.az 

President Alexander Lukashenko spoke to students and

 professors at the Belarusian State Pedagogical University.

Lukashenko noted during his speech that he hates

nationalists as they lead the society to a catastrophe as it

happened in Ukraine. Lukashenko said that language should

not create problem within the Belarusian society. “The

language cannot and should not be used to cause the

discord,” he was quoted saying. 

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Thousands of people across Iran joined spontaneous crowdsto mourn the death of 30-year-old Iranian pop singer MortezaPashaei, who passed away on Friday. Masses of young people who flocked to Tehran’s Behesht-e Zahra cemeteryon Sunday prompted police in riot gear to close the cemeteryand led to the postponement of the funeral. Witnessesreported arrests in the northeastern city of Mashhad, where police attempted to disperse the crowds. The crowds were

among the largest seen since the 2009 protests. 

 New York Times Reuters 

EBRD President Chakrabarti made his first official visit toTajikistan this week, marking the first time in nine years that a president of the EBRD has visited the country. Chakrabartisigned financing agreements with two companies during thevisit, one with IMON International, a microfinance institution,and another with Schiever Tajikistan, which plans to open thecountry’s first modern supermarket. Chakrabarti praisedTajikistan’s im proved ranking in the World Bank DoingBusiness report and emphasized EBRD’s commitment to the

countr y. Astana Times  Azer News 

On Tuesday, Italian oil and gas company Eni signed a seriesof agreements with Turkmenistan to expand its operations inthe country. Eni extended an onshore production sharingagreement until February 2032 and transferred a 10 percentstake in the block to Turkmen state-owned oil companyTurkmenneft. Eni and Turkmenneft also signed amemorandum agreeing to explore the possibility of extendingEni’s activities to Turkmenistan’s offshore sector. 

Reuters  Oil & Gas Technology 

A new visa-free regime between Russia and Mongolia began on November 14. Vladimir Goryachev of theRussian Embassy in Mongolia called a press conference inwhich he announced that Mongolians will be able to stay inRussia - and Russians in Mongolia - for 30 days without avisa. The counselor qualified the new regime byannouncing that the overall duration of the stay cannotexceed 90 days over six months.

Info Mongolia  ITAR-TASS 

 Norway’s government summoned Telenor Chairman Svein

Aaser for a meeting to explain reports alleging thatVimpelCom had paid bribes to gain business in Uzbekistan. Norway’s government owns a 54 percent share of Telenor,while Telenor holds 33 percent of VimpelCom, a Russian phone carrier. Allegations emerged last week thatVimpelCom might have transferred bribes amounting to

55 million to Uzbek authorities. 

Last week Kyrgyz and Russian authorities opened formalinvestigations into kerosene smuggling from the Russianairbase in Kant, Kyrgyzstan. The investigations followed anOctober 7 incident where a truck leaving the Kant airbasewas caught carrying 13 tons of stolen kerosene. RuslanUmarov, head of the investigation for the State Serviceagainst Economic Crimes, admitted that kerosene smugglingimplicated Russian troops and that several suspects wereunder investigation.

Stan Radar   Vecherniy Bishkek  

Reuters  Bloomberg 

A truck bomb exploded near a foreign security compound inKabul on Tuesday killing two guards and two attackers, andwounding three additional people. The Afghan Taliban havetaken responsibility for the incident. The attack was the latestin a recent string of suicide explosions in the city. In the pastweek, the chief of police and a prominent female legislatorwere also targeted. Although both survived, at least threeother people were wounded in the attempt.

UPI Fox News 

The intelligence agency of Kazakhstan has estimated thataround 300 Kazakh nationals are fighting in Syria and Iraqwith the Islamic State (IS). The Kazakh militants within IShave formed their own fighting unit. Half of those fightingin Iran and Syria are women. The government is concernedthat the involvement of Kazakhs with ISIS might bringinsecurity to the country after the NATO mission toAfghanistan comes to an end.

RFE/RL Trend.az 

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According to exit polls, Poland’s ruling center -right partyCivic Platform (PO) lost Sunday’s provincial  assemblyelections to the Law and Justice Party (PiS). Poland’s election

commission PKW announced that the release of officialelection results has been delayed due to technical problems, butexit polls showed that conservative opposition party Law andJustice won 31.5 percent of votes for members, compared to27.3 percent for Civic Platform and 17 percent for junior

coalition partner Peasants Party (PSL).  

BBC  Reuters 

Local elections were held in Slovakia on Sunday, November 15Independent candidates saw success across the country, earning37.95 percent of mayoral seats and 28.91 percent of localcouncil seats. Smer was the most successful political party,earning 29.11 percent of mayoral seats and 28.91 percent oflocal council seats. The Christian Democrats (KDH) and theethnic Hungarian parties Hungarian Community Party (SMK)

and Most-Híd also won seats. 

The Slovak Spectator   The Global Times 

Opposition candidate Klaus Iohannis, mayor of theTransylvanian city of Sibiu, won a surprise victory inRomania’s second round of presidential elections on Sunday.Current Prime Minister Victor Ponta had been leading inopinion polls but conceded late Sunday night. Mr. Iohannis’

victory in the runoff election appears to be due to the support ofthe large Romanian diaspora, which turned out to vote in recordnumbers. Mr. Iohannis has promised to fight corruption andstrengthen the independence of the judicial system.

The Washington Times  The Guardian Sputnik  Associated Press 

Former Latvian parliamentarian Aleksejs Holostovs wassupposedly expelled from Russia on charges of espionage.According to a Russian report, Holostovs was quoted sayingthat he was working for CIA-controlled Latvian specialservices to gather information on popular discontent withRussian President Vladimir Putin. However, a Latvian newsagency has said that Holostovs was surprised at theallegation and had no knowledge of being deported. NeitherRussian nor Latvian authorities have specified the exactdate of Holostovs’s de ortation. 

Moscow Times  RFE/RL 

Wall Street Journal  Reuters 

Russia Today 

The Economist  Portfolio.hu

Baltic Times 

On Monday, Czech Republic celebrated the 25thAnniversary of the Velvet Revolution. President MilosZeman stood together with German, Hungarian, Slovak andPolish presidents at the university campus where thedemonstrations started a quarter century ago. However, theevent turned into a protest against Zeman himself. He was pelted with objects including eggs, sandwiches and tomatoes.

Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite called Russia a‘terrorist state’ in an interview with the national radio. "If aterrorist state that is engaged in open aggression against itsneighbor is not stopped, then that aggression might spreadfurther into Europe,” she said. In response to Grybauskaite, acommunist party MP of the Russian Federation suggestedthat Moscow should cease diplomatic ties with Vilnius andintroduce further sanctions.

Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas said that he awaits NATO to increase its military presence in the Baltic region,as agreed in September at the NATO summit in Wales.Roivas made a statement at a meeting with NATO SecretaryGeneral Jens Stoltenberg who arrived in Estonia on a one-day visit. Stoltenberg commented that Russia’s growingmilitary presence in Baltic airspace poses risks to civilaviation.

More than 10,000 Hungarians took to the streets on Mondayto protest against alleged corruption and centralization of power of the Hungarian government. The protesters aredemanding the resignation of the Prime Minister. The public’s dissatisfaction with the policies of the Fidesz partyis growing. Western countries have criticized Orban’s

 policies. The U.S. recently banned six Hungarian officialsfrom entering the country on the grounds of corruption.

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Bulgaria’s Finance Ministry is exploring options of ways to

raise 4.5 billion levs ($2.9 billion) before the end of the yearto finance increased spending and prop up the bankingsystem. Bulgaria is in talks to borrow 2-3 billion levs in bridge financing from foreign banks and aims to raise another2 billion levs on the local market. Bulgaria plans to allocate1.6 billion levs to finance the budget deficit, 2 billion levs tothe Deposit Insurance Fund to cover guaranteed deposits atCorpbank and 900 million levs to provide liquidity support tolocal bank s. 

Reuters   Novinite 

On Wednesday, President Atifete Jahjaga announced thatKosovo’s two largest parties had agreed “in principle” to

form a coalition, ending five months of political deadlock.The agreement was reached between Prime MinisterHashim Thaci of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK)and Isa Mustafa of the rival Democratic League of Kosovo(LDK). Kosovo’s parliament has struggled to form a

coalition since the June 8 elections, leading to fears of potential bankruptcy as its politicians have been unable tovote on the budget. 

Al Jazeera  Reuters 

Russian FM spokesman Aleksandr Lukashevich says thatMoscow opposes attempts by the European Union to forceSerbia into adopting sanctions against Russia. The statementcomes after a European Commission report on enlargementin October that said Belgrade’s refusal to follow the EU’s

lead on sanctions could endanger Belgrade’s membership

 bid. However, on November 18, an EU Enlargement

 Negotiation commissioner claimed there was “no linkage.” 

RFE/RL  ITAR-TASS 

The Union of European Football Associations charged theCroatian Football Federation over racist behavior of Croatianfans during the Italy-Croatia draw on November 16. Croatiaalso faces charges of crowd disturbances related to fanssetting off fireworks and throwing flares onto the field at SanSiro Stadium. UEFA’s ethics and disciplinary body will hear

the case on December 11. Croatian coach Niko Kovac said

that he expected UEFA punishment after the game. 

BBC  USA Today 

On Wednesday, severe flooding from torrential rainfall killedthree people as power and water were cut off in much of thecountry’s west and south. Two perished as their car was swept

away by floodwaters in Lac, while the third motorcycle driverwas also found dead in Lac. The rainfall also affected thecapital Tirana and the port city of Durres. The government putthe army on standby to help emergency workers withevacuation and rescue efforts as heavy rain continues.

On Thursday, China’s vice Premier Wang Yang arrived in Slovenia to promote Chinese investment to the country.Wang appeared with Slovenian counterpart Dejan Zidan,saying that, “China can provide a huge market and

sufficient funds for Slovenia.” Wang’s delegation includes

150 businessmen and focuses on possible investments in thecountry’s main Adriatic port in Koper, transportation

infrastructure, and state companies to be privatized. 

Capital FM  STA 

Focus ABC  Balkans.com ITAR-TASS 

Global Post MINA

On Tuesday, the Macedonian government requested a two-day investigation within relevant state institutions on re-exported agricultural products from the EU to Russia.Russia claims that banned foodstuffs from the EU have been finding their way into Russia through Macedonia, andthey announced that they will begin scrutinizing quantitiesof Macedonian products to see if there have been anysuspicious increases.

The Russian Federation has banned the import of meat fromMontenegro –  the Russian Agricultural WatchdogRosselkhoznadzor announced on November 18. The decisionhas been made to prevent the EU member states from exportmeat through Montenegro, avoiding the ban on food productimports imposed by Russia. Russia plans to introduce asimilar restriction for Albania and Macedonia if the countries“don’t dispel the doubts” as the head of the watchdog wasquoted saying.

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On Monday, Bosnian police arrested 12 Bosnian Serbs oncharges of crimes against humanity related to attacks in thecountry’s 1992-95 war in which 150 Muslim Bosniaks,including women and children, were killed and dumped inmass graves. The mass grave was uncovered last year nearPrijedor, believed to hold the remains of around 1,000

victims. 

Reuters  IBT