NATO leaders will formulate plans to bolster its eastern flank across Central and Eastern Europe at a summit in Madrid in June, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced. Calling Russia’s invasion of Ukraine the “biggest security crisis in a generation”, Stoltenberg said “regardless of when, how, the war in Ukraine ends
Over two hundred Russian diplomats have been sent home from countries in Europe this week, in response to scenes of atrocities in the Kiev suburb of Bucha, in eastern Ukraine. The number of expelled Russian envoys from European states now totals 325, representing “one of the biggest diplomatic breakdowns of
The EU banned Russian seafaring vessels from entering European ports, as it approved its fifth tranche of sanctions against Russia on Friday. The bloc also embargoed Russian coal supplies from August and enforced restrictions on all transactions with four major Russian banks. “We are proposing a fifth package of sanctions,
The Hungarian Ministry of Finance took the unusual step of issuing a public statement aimed at international investors on Friday. After Sunday’s celebrations, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban woke up to a grim domestic economic reality that includes a plummeting forint, rocketing prices and rule of law disputes that
The Polish Finance Ministry confirmed on Thursday that the European Commission (EC) has paid Poland EUR 30 million less in EU funding over the country’s failure to pay European Court of Justice (ECJ) fines, in an unprecedented move. The ECJ has so far levied EUR 200 million in penalties
Nearly 300 Russian companies and nationals have been registered in Serbia since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, Belgrade-based television channel N1 reported. According to Serbia’s Business Registers Agency, 288 Russian companies registered in Serbia between 24 February and 6 April, when Ukrainians registered only 6
The EUR 12.5 bn expansion of Hungary’s only nuclear power plant at Paks remains viable, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told members of the press on Wednesday afternoon. Russian state nuclear company Rosatom’s addition of two blocks at the facility, can still go ahead, according to the
The chairman-CEO of one of Hungary’s oldest and best known companies, historic light bulb maker Tungsram, appealed to the government for assistance on Tuesday. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the pandemic and difficulties with the global supply chain are endangering the future of the Tungsram group, Jörg Bauer told
Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewin said on Monday that a significant recession in Germany would be “almost inevitable” if imports of Russian oil and natural gas were stopped. German banks are expecting the country’s GDP growth to slow to 2% in 2022 from 2.7% in 2021, in the
Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia will this week commence a process of complete isolation from Russia and Belarus, the Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Mustafa Nayem announced on Monday. In a letter sent to the ministries that oversee infrastructure in each of the four countries, the Ukraine government suggested the
Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić declared victory in the country’s general elections on Sunday night, as pollsters estimated that he would secure almost 60% of the national presidential vote. Vucic admitted that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had affected the campaign. However he added that Serbia has no plans
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán secured his fourth consecutive term with a landslide victory in Hungary’s national elections on Sunday. Orbán’s Fidesz party secured 53% while the United for Hungary six-party opposition alliance received only 35%. The margin of victory was beyond predictions, as the opposition alliance had
NATO’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday that intelligence showed Russian forces in Ukraine were not withdrawing, but appeared to be regrouping, according to Al Jazeera. His assertion contradicted the Kremlin’s announcement on Tuesday that it planned to reduce military operations in Kyiv and Chernihiv, following bilateral negotiations
Poland adopted draft legislation on Wednesday to prohibit coal imports from Russia. In its efforts to move away from all Russian energy sources, Warsaw says coal will be cut off within two months, while oil imports should cease by the end of 2022, according to Notes From Poland. Poland’s
Wednesday saw a flurry of statements from Moscow and Kyiv on the prospects for peace in Ukraine, following talks between the two sides’ delegations on Tuesday in Istanbul, Turkey, but actual progress towards a peace deal remained unclear. Al Jazeera reported that on Wednesday the Kremlin’s lead negotiator Vladimir
Hungary cancelled a scheduled summit of defence ministers from the Visegrad 4 (“V4”) group of EU member states – Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia – on Tuesday. The defence ministers of both Czechia and Poland signalled they would not attend the gathering, scheduled for 30-31 March, due to Hungary’s stance on
Russia said on Tuesday it would reduce its military operations around Kyiv, and in Chernihiv in the north of Ukraine to build trust towards the prospect of Moscow and Kyiv eventually reaching a peace settlement. The BBC reports that Russia’s Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin made the announcement to
In a speech closing his visit to Poland, US President Joe Biden reassured NATO allies in Central and Eastern Europe that America does have their back in case of an attack by Russia, honouring its “sacred obligation” under Article 5, writes Notes from Poland. Biden warned Moscow: “Don’t even
The United States agreed a deal on Friday with the European Union to provide the bloc with an additional 15 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas this year to reduce the proceeds received by the Kremlin from energy exports to Europe. The liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipped from America
At an emergency NATO summit in Brussels on Thursday, US President Joe Biden said that the defence alliance had “never been more united” even though Russia’s Vladimir Putin was counting on dissension among its members over his invasion of Ukraine, according to Euronews. Biden commented, “Putin is getting exactly
NATO representatives meeting on Thursday will consider boosting the strength of the defence alliance’s eastern flank even further given Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. While NATO has already bumped up troop numbers, which now number 40,000 on its eastern border, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia could see
Russian forces using chemical weapons in Ukraine would not only be a violation of international law, but have “far-reaching consequences”, warned NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the defence alliance’s headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday, writes Al Jazeera. He also said Moscow could not “win a nuclear war”, according to
Ukrainians are going through a “living hell”, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday, in what he termed an unwinnable war in Ukraine, the Guardian reported. “Sooner or later it will have to move from the battlefields to the peace table”, Guterres said of the war. “That is inevitable. The
Efforts to reduce dependency upon Russian sources of energy within countries in Central and Eastern Europe have taken on a new urgency following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine over three weeks ago. Bulgaria’s Deputy Prime Minister Asen Vassilev says Bulgaria will not renew its contract with Gazprom when the
The US Defence Department says there is “clear evidence” that Russian forces are committing war crimes in Ukraine, according to reporting by the Guardian. In a news conference on Monday, the Pentagon alleged Russia’s military is attacking indiscriminately and that the Defence Department would contribute to an investigative process