China & Russia

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Should the Nabucco pipeline project be shelved?

Should the Nabucco pipeline project be shelved?

Katinka Barysch
05 May 2010
Nabucco - a pipeline to bring Caspian and perhaps Middle Eastern gas to Europe - is the flagship project of the EU's fledgling energy diplomacy. Nabucco would add to the EU's energy security, strengthen its neighbourhood policies and improve relations with Turkey.
Can the EU be more effective in Afghanistan?

Can the EU be more effective in Afghanistan?

Joanna Buckley
27 April 2010
The EU and its governments make a substantial financial, civilian and military contribution to Afghanistan - yet European influence in the country is limited. For too long the EU has had too many offices and representatives there, sometimes working at cross purposes.
China and the global financial crisis

China and the global financial crisis

Bobo Lo
16 April 2010
China has come through the global financial and economic crisis in a confident manner. Economic growth is strong and China's foreign policy has become more assertive. Bobo Lo's essay challenges many western assumptions about the rise of China.
Whatever happened to the G20?

Whatever happened to the G20?

Katinka Barysch
14 April 2010
George W Bush convened the first G20 summit in Washington in November 2008, at the height of the global financial and economic crisis. At two further summits in 2009, G20 leaders pledged to co-ordinate their economic stimulus packages (as well as exit strategies), avoid protectionism, address global imbalances, triple the resources of the IMF, and work out stricter rules for banks, hedge funds and other financial players.
Can and should the EU and Russia reset their relationship?

Can and should the EU and Russia reset their relationship?

Katinka Barysch
22 February 2010
Russia's oil-fuelled boom has ended and President Medvedev is calling for radical improvements to the economy. Some EU politicians are tempted to offer Russia a 'modernisation partnership' to re-launch the stalled EU-Russia relationship.
China and EU flags

How should Europe respond to China's strident rise?

01 February 2010
Until very recently, many western politicians, bankers and business people were broadly optimistic about the rise of China. They assumed that as China became more developed it would become more western.
China's peaceful rise turns prickly thumbnail

China's peaceful rise turns prickly

22 January 2010
Have western attitudes to the rise of China been based on wishful thinking? China's increasingly tough approach to diplomacy is leading governments in the US and in Europe to rethink their policies towards China.
Gazprom’s uncertain outlook thumbnail

Gazprom’s uncertain outlook

Katinka Barysch
18 December 2009
Many people in the EU tend to see Gazprom as a mighty giant that uses energy as a political tool on behalf of the Kremlin. They say that Russia has leverage because it controls 40 per cent of the EU’s gas imports.
Sharing the burden of a weaker dollar file thumbnail

Sharing the burden of a weaker dollar

Simon Tilford
01 December 2009
The eurozone has suffered a deep recession – bigger than the US and about as bad as that in the UK. Public finances across the eurozone have worsened dramatically, and in some cases now look perilous.
Last hooray for the EU on Iran?

Last hooray for the EU on Iran?

Tomas Valasek
25 November 2009
When the EU's first 'foreign minister', Cathy Ashton, starts work on December 1st, she will find Iran on top of her 'to do' pile. Earlier this week, Tehran turned down a proposal from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that would have seen a large part of the country's stock of uranium moved out of the country for further enrichment.
NATO, Russia and European security

NATO, Russia and European security

Tomas Valasek
06 November 2009
Countries in Europe's east and north worry that Moscow is blundering into a confrontation with NATO. They have begun demanding that the alliance start preparing for a possible conflict. But are they right to be concerned?
Making choices over China: EU-China co-operation on energy and climate

Making choices over China: EU-China co-operation on energy and climate

Nick Mabey
02 November 2009
The EU needs China to move rapidly towards a low carbon economy. Even with strong leadership at the highest level in China, this will not be easy, given the country's scale, diversity and development needs.
Rebalancing the Chinese economy

Rebalancing the Chinese economy

Simon Tilford
02 November 2009
China's economy and society are undergoing an extraordinary transformation, with hundreds of millions of people escaping poverty in record time. But the country's development model is not sustainable economically or politically.
The dangers of Karzai’s re-election

The dangers of Karzai’s re-election

Tomas Valasek
10 September 2009
The final result of the Afghan election may not be known until the end of September, but it looks as if President Hamid Karzai will have done well enough to avoid a second round of voting.
Cyprus: The costs of failure

Cyprus: The costs of failure

David Hannay
01 September 2009
The latest round of settlement talks on the divided island of Cyprus will reach their decisive phase later this year or in early 2010.
Iran's nuclear problem

Iran's nuclear problem: Ever harder to fix

Tomas Valasek
03 August 2009
Iran’s theocratic regime remains in power, despite persistent divisions within the ruling elite. Whatever the long-term fate of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the unrest that followed June’s presidential election probably makes it harder for the West to persuade Iran to set aside its nuclear ambitions.
Barack Obama...
Can Europeans share a common security culture?

Can Europeans share a common security culture?

Clara Marina O'Donnell
27 July 2009
European countries have long declared their ambition to turn the EU into a global player in security – in order to tackle common threats and strengthen their voice on the global stage.