For the Republic of Moldova, 2021 has been ridden with political, social and economic challenges. The highlight of the year was the victory of pro-European forces in the parliamentary election, after in late 2020 Maia Sandu had secured the office of president.
Three decades after the fall of communism, Vaclav Havel remains the most important symbol of the Velvet Revolution. Michael Švec writes from Prague about the days of the revolution and Havel's legacy.
Both Greece and Turkey have been marked in recent years by crises managed by populist politicians. While Athens seems to have overcome the momentum with the help of the EU - which has also blocked dangerous slips - Ankara continues to sink into crisis and move away from Brussels.
Relations between the Republic of Moldova and Romania have often been described as privileged, and there is even talk of a strategic partnership. However, on numerous occasions during the last few decades, Bucharest’s efforts and openness have stood out more, even when it was met with hostility by a country that has ever strived to strike a balance between its “Eastern” and Western orientation.
The Romanian Revolution of December 1989, as well as the national rebirth movement in the Republic of Moldova, wrought up the Romanians in Bukovina, which was an integral part of the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic. Many of the hopes that came with the demise of communisms were however shattered in the face of the new geopolitical realities.
With a new coalition, promising hefty reforms and ending an almost year-long stalemate, Bulgaria seems to be heading towards a change. It is the promise of a new beginning, after a decade marked by GERB domination and suspicions of corruption. For the younger generation, it may as well be a new 1989 moment.
Vadim Krasnoselsky remains at the helm of Transnistria after Sunday’s presidential “election”, which the international community did not recognize. Supported by the Sheriff corporation, Krasnoselsky received the blessing of Moscow, the one who truly controls the breakaway region.
The United States is pulling out from Iraq in December. This is the second time the Americans are withdrawing from this country. In their wake remains a fragile state, where Washington’s enemies have a big say.
The pipeline should have been a first step towards reducing dependence on Russian gas. However, as long as Gazprom’s prices remain lower than on the European markets, the gas pipeline is only decorative.
The game for the world chess title has a special stake for Moscow. Like the USSR before it, Putin's Russia is obsessed with success at all costs in the chess arena - both on the board itself and within the International Chess Federation.
China and Russia increasingly converge in their approach to relations with the USA and the West, which has given rise to speculation about a possible military alliance. Worst-case scenario, Russia and China will engage in coordinated military strikes in areas of key interest for the two autocratic powers: Taiwan and Ukraine.
Less than a month after Moldova signed a new contract for the delivery of natural gas, Moscow proved it knows how to use its terms to its advantage. It is clear that Moldova’s energy problems are far from over, and the only medium- and long-term solution out of this deadlock is to diversify its suppliers.
The collapse of the Turkish lira is largely the result of Ankara's policies. These are policies dependent on the Islamic-conservative ideology and populist-authoritarian tendencies of the Erdögan regime, the first to seriously challenge Atatürk's view of the state.
Decades after the guns fell silent in Bosnia, a different type of war is being waged in Belgrade between those who insist on facing the past so that Serbia can move forward and those still trapped in the wartime nationalist narratives of the 1990s.
On Tuesday, Maia Sandu pays a visit to a Bucharest, which, preoccupied with the political and epidemiological crisis it faces, has placed the bilateral relationship somewhere in the background. As it has often happened in the last 30 years, opportunities have been missed; but even so, ties continue to strengthen.
Thousands of migrants got trapped on the Poland – Belarus border between the two countries’ security forces. The EU and NATO denounced a hybrid attack, Belarus denies and relies on Russian support, and Putin makes his own game.
All five members of the emerging coalition speak with one voice about the pro-Western direction of the country and the return of the policy of promoting human rights in the world.
Bulgaria goes deeper into unpredictable territory following the November 14 joint elections. The general elections saw a new reformist party debuting on top against all odds, while in the Presidential run, Rumen Radev is set to be re-elected after mustering nearly 50 per cent of the vote in the first round.
The PAS administration marked 100 days since it took office by publishing an activity report presenting its achievements. Overall, the Government in Chișinău had a number of accomplishments, but things are not as peachy as the aforementioned report suggests.
The coronavirus pandemic was accompanied by a genuine wave of fake news, the second in merely a decade. The false narratives in this wave are repurposed and updated: the disinformation they spread are disguised to come across as local topics and concerns. The Kremlin has thus adjusted its strategy for spreading disinformation to Romanians’ notorious Russophobia.
The summit on climate change, COP26, brings no breaking news: we already know that a critical point has been reached. However, just knowing it doesn't help. We need urgent measures and policies that can no longer be postponed if we want to give future generations a chance.
The strategic partnership between Romania and the USA will enter a new stage, after the signing last Thursday of a very important agreement between the Romanian state-owned company Nuclearelectrica and the US NuScale Power on the deployment in Romania of small modular nuclear reactors, known as SMR, which will give access to a new source of clean energy.
Russia has traditionally used gas as a weapon, and Ukraine has been a traditional target of Kremlin’s energy aggression. The events of autumn 2021 in Europe invite us to have a look at the previous so-called “gas-wars” and their impact, in order to be able to better predict Russia’s future actions and understands its tactis and motivations.
Vladimir Putin’s plans have two main goals: to take Ukraine out of the gas market, and thus silence any political regime in Kiev, and to destabilize the European Union by means of repeated natural gas crises.
Announced with bells and whistles as a big thing achieved by the Republic of Moldova with regard to the gas supply from Russia, the new contract with Gazprom is not exactly a success, either economically or politically.
A Cold War era relic, the Non-Aligned Movement is still seen as useful by one of its founding members – Serbia – and a prospective new-comer, Russia. Both are aiming to project their soft power among the organizations 130+ members and observers. And both may be expecting too much from a Movement that never really managed to become a real alternative to the world’s power poles.
On October the 23rd, Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that he had told his foreign minister to declare ten ambassadors persona non grata, after they asked for the release of an activist jailed for years. Seven of these were ambassadors from NATO allied countries, including the US and European heavyweights France and Germany. The crisis, which threatened to be the most severe between Ankara and its allies since Erdoğan came to power, was eventually eased, but nonetheless, it was indicative of Erdogan’s stance towards the West.
Igor Dodon’s surprising announcement about his withdrawal from political life and entry into business early last week raised a lot of questions regarding the former pro-Russian president’s actual endgame.
The recent parliamentary elections have redrawn the political map in the Czech Republic. The incumbent Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has lost power, a coalition of five very diverse parties will most likely govern, and voters of the traditional left-wing parties have lost their representation entirely. The post-election situation is further complicated by the fact that President Miloš Zeman is seriously ill and, according to the hospital where he is hospitalised, is unable to exercise his powers. Prague Castle, however, is silent about Zeman's condition.
The Metropolitanate of Moldova is one of the instruments Russia is using to exert its influence in Chișinău. From backing pro-Russian politicians in election campaigns to blocking certain pieces of legislation that would take Moldova closer to Europe, the Metropolitanate has constantly shown that religion is hardly its sole concern.
The Pandora Papers did not cause a major surprise in Bulgaria, a country accustomed to corruption scandals. It remains to be seen what will their impact be. For now, one of those exposed in the leaks, controversial oligarch Delyan Peevski, instead of hiding returned from Dubai to Bulgaria and announced his come back to the political scene.
Events this week in Iraq, Lebanon and two European countries were a stark reminder that we still need to pay attention to the Middle East
