This highlights what happens every week in the energy sector that has geopolitical significance and has the power to shape the way the energy industry works. EU: The European Parliament voted on Jan. 17 in favor of the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) proposal. This means that negotiations with the EU Council over the proposed draft can start immediately. The negotiations between the Council...

GPF Senior Analyst Antonia Colibasanu visited Belgrade last week and chaired three sessions at the Serbian Economic Summit, between Oct. 23-25, on the broad theme of energy security in the Balkans, taking into account both the geopolitics and the business imperatives of the sector. THE REGIONAL ENERGY OUTLOOK: Statement: Aleksandar Antic, Minister of Mining and Energy of the Republic of...

Fragile political stability in the Balkans. Macedonian new government, led by Zoran Zaev of the Social Democrats SDSM, was voted on May 31, six months after elections. Following the visit of the U.S. Deputy Assistant for Eurasia Hoyt Brian Yee, the Albanian opposition Democratic Party leader Lulzim Basha and ruling Socialist Prime Minister Edi Rama reached an agreement on sharing the management...

by Antonia Colibasanu In the Balkans, talk about „Great Albania” has been spreading around. This is not a new theme and it has been used before in campaigning speeches – in countries fearing such a possibility, but also in Albania proper. The topic has made it into the European mainstream media editorials as this time, it is closely linked to the political crisis in Macedonia....

Cu ocazia sărbătorilor, un text despre semnificaţie şi călătorie înEuropa: Lumina. “Există mult mai puţini oameni ingraţi decât s-ar putea crede, pentru că există mult mai puţini oameni generoşi decât se spune… mi-aş dori ca acela care îndatorează să fie satisfăcut de generozitatea acţiunii sale, fără a se gândi la recunoştinţa celor care îi...

by Antonia Colibasanu The U.S. has attacked the Syrian Sharyat airbase near Homs last night in response to earlier news related to Assad regime chemical weapons attack on Syrian population. It was reported that 50 Tomahawk missiles were launched from U.S. Navy warships in the Mediterranean Sea and they were striking multiple targets: the airstrip, aircraft and fuel stations. There haven’t been...

By Antonia Colibasanu France is the only country in Europe that is both a northern and southern power. The Continent’s northern and southern regions have developed in relative isolation. Two geographic features help pull the Continent in separate directions. The first is the North European Plain – an expansive stretch of land extending from the Russian steppe in the east to the French...

by Antonia Colibasanu US Secretary of Defense James Mattis participated for the first time to a NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels on Feb. 16. He took the opportunity to explain, on that occasion, as well as during the Munich Security Conference that followed the NATO gathering, the U.S. position on NATO. This is not the first time that the U.S. is criticizing NATO’s evolution. But...

by Antonia Colibășanu The members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced last week that they have agreed to cut oil production. We will see whether they actually reach an understanding at the end of November. The media has trumpeted the event as a success for OPEC, which hasn’t gotten this close to adjusting its production quotas since 2008, when it had to...

By Antonia Colibasanu When flying over the vast Pannonian Plain in January, you understand the reasons for Poland’s anxiety when it comes to national security. While the land was covered by snow, I could only think of how vulnerable it looked. There was nothing protecting the soft patches of whiteness in between the gray lines of roads or railroads, as seen from the plane. It seemed that the...