Regardless of Turkish elections results, energy minister Taner Yıldız was going to be leaving his post anyway, because of the term limits on AK Party members that its de facto (because in Turkey the president should in principle be above … Continue reading →
It is in serious trouble, but is the Russian economy unsustainable? Western sanctions have restricted Russian companies’ access to international financial markets, but it is the state’s policies and priorities that are tanking its economic performance. Recent statistical releases show … Continue reading →
Interview on John Batchelor Show, WABC-AM (770AM, New York City), 18 May 2015.
Turkish Stream pipeline prospects are not good in the long run even if Russia immediately begins laying the pipeline originally commissioned for use in South Stream.
Caspian Sea gas is not so plentiful in Turkmenistan, where the main deposits are in the country’s southeast. Yet with the completion of the East-West Pipeline (EWP), that gas is starting to become politically available for export westward through the … Continue reading →
Radio interview on Turkmenistan’s energy relations with Europe and Russia and the East-West Pipeline inside the country.
Continue reading →Errors have infiltrated reports of Russian-Turkish gas negotiations. Correcting them reveals that Russia is trying to take advantage of the deterioration of EU-Turkey relations, but Turkey is not taking the bait.
Continue reading →Interview on John Batchelor Show, WABC-AM 770 (New York City), 22 January 2015. … Continue reading →
Helicopter-carriers for Russia embargoed by France match Canada’s coastal fleet modernization needs French president François Hollande’s several weeks ago to Canada opens the way to resolving at least one thorny problem created by the Russian invasion and annexation of Crimea. … Continue reading →
NSA leaker Edward Snowden has applied to the Russian government for the extension of his temporary asylum, which expires July 31. There is public debate among the Western (but not the Russian) commentariat about whether his application will be granted. … Continue reading →
The major news out of China this week has surely been Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two-day visit to Shanghai, which concluded with Wednesday’s agreement whereby Russia will supply China with Siberian gas for 30 years. The Ukraine crisis has something … Continue reading →