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Energy
Global energy leaders address supply security and connectivity in Azerbaijan
Decision makers from governments, global energy companies and financial institutions as well as leading industry experts gathered in Baku on June 1-3 to discuss...
China
China hosts Trump: High scores on ceremony but modest deliverables
No one should be surprised that U.S. President Donald Trump’s China visit on May 13-15 had a heavy focus on ceremony and symbolic messaging,...
Climate Diplomacy
Kazakhstan spearheads ecological collaboration across Central Asia and beyond
Addressing climate and environmental challenges across Central Asia, the Regional Ecological Summit RES 2026 in Astana on April 22-24 hosted by the Government of...
Global Economy
IMF warns of global downturn risk from continuing Iran conflict
It should surprise no one that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) - World Bank Spring meetings in Washington D.C. on April 13–18 were overshadowed...
Oil & Gas
Industry warns EU Methane Regulation risks disruption to Europe’s oil and gas supply
Oil and gas companies have urged the European Union to pause its Methane Regulation, warning that it could put EU gas and crude oil...
Sanctions and related policies
U.S. waiver for Russia oil sanctions brings dismay, not price stability
On March 12, the United States temporarily waived existing sanctions on Russian oil that is already at sea, allowing it to be delivered to...
Trade
Liberation Day tariffs overturned as flagship U.S. trade policy damaged
It was not unexpected. Warnings had been coming for months that U.S. President Donald Trump’s flagship “Liberation Day” tariffs announced last April were simply...
Emissions targets and regulations
U.S. EPA retreats from global commitments on climate
In a sweeping climate change policy rollback, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has cancelled an Obama-era scientific finding that carbon dioxide and other...
Global Economy
Davos 2026 — threats, climbdowns and false constructs
The 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (#WEF26) convened nearly 3,000 leaders from government, business, civil society and academia under the theme...
Global Energy Supplies
Venezuelan, Iranian oil disruptions unlikely to redefine oil market trajectory
The recent U.S. actions in Venezuela and the volatile situation in Iran as the government cracks down on demonstrations currently appear to have limited...
The Negroni Diaries
Another Trump Iran pronouncement – tariff details to follow
In typical Trump style, U.S. President Donald Trump’s January 12 announcement of stiff new tariffs on Iran’s trading partners was devoid of almost all...
Invasion of Ukraine
EU writes itself out of the Ukraine war peace drive
By settling for a “Plan B” style Ukraine relief loan using the EU’s financial creditworthiness instead of making a politically decisive but risky decision...
Interviews
Lithuania sees LNG, renewables on the road to energy independence
Lithuania, which along the other Baltic states Latvia and Estonia disconnected their electricity systems from Russia's power grid earlier this year, is increasingly transitioning...
The Negroni Diaries
Another Russia-tilting Trump peace proposal emerges
President Donald Trump apparently has no more refined strategy than to disrupt the flow of world business/diplomacy with an outrageous opening salvo to make...
Russia Sanctions
Watering down U.S. Russia sanctions for Hungary – what was gained?
For a while, it appeared as if the war in Ukraine was again a top priority in the White House, but ultimately that turned...
Pipeline networks
Israel’s planned Nitzana pipeline to Egypt gains momentum
Israel's planned Nitzana pipeline that will be constructed from Ramat Hovav, near Beersheba in the Negev desert, to the border with Egypt in the...
Russia Sanctions
As Trump’s Ukraine peace initiative fades, new U.S. sanctions unleashed
The war in Ukraine is again front and center in the White House. While U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace drive had started to...
Global Energy Insider
From Baku to Belém, COP30 works to salvage global climate action commitments
Ahead of COP30 UN talks in the Amazon city of Belém, Brazil, the second Baku Climate Action Week in Azerbaijan on September 29 to...
United Nations
The UN at 80 — Little to celebrate with multilateralism under stress
Like clockwork, at the end of September, many of the world’s leaders converge on New York for the annual UN General Assembly (UNGA) session...
Major Projects
Ethiopia inaugurates the largest dam in Africa as Egypt and Sudan raise Nile water concerns
Ethiopia inaugurated on September 9 the largest hydropower project ever built in Africa which could transform the country into an electricity exporter and boost...
Trade
Trump trade deal leaves some in EU unhinged
U.S. President Donald Trump completed his five-day “private visit” to Scotland on July 25-29, which beyond his golf course visits included a number of...
Interviews
Cyprus Energy Minister warns against creating new dependencies
The European Union needs to avoid “new dependencies” as it plans to phase out Russian energy supplies and meet its green transition goals, Cyprus...
Defense & Security
NATO shifts into high gear at 2025 Hague Summit
Many are calling the June 24-25 NATO Summit in the Hague “the Trump Summit,” noting it was “historic” and “transformational.” But most of the...
Canada
Alberta G7 Summit – forgotten before it ended?
One song that will never be associated with the June 15-18 Alberta G7 Summit is Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable."
While this year’s Canada-hosted G7 Summit...
Columns
What to do about Nord Stream?
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told a press conference with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky in Berlin on May 28 that his government will do everything...
The Middle East
In search of jobs and treasure: Trump’s first overseas jaunt takes a distinctly commercial angle
U.S. President Donald Trump completed a four-day tour of the Middle East on May 13-16, visiting Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates....
Columns
EU Commission plans Russian gas phaseout as MEPs propose easing pre-winter storage targets
Ensuring gas supply security ahead of the winter season, the European Parliament approved in Strasbourg on May 8 the Commission's proposal to extend the...
The Negroni Diaries
False economy: Washington will regret closing important diplomatic posts
At this point many readers will have seen press reports indicating that a large number of American embassies and consulates are being studied for...
Economy & Business
Doom, gloom or boom?
While it is an almost painful daily task to ascertain where the Trump administration is positioned on the question of tariff policy, and traders...
Interviews
Romania utilizing all available resources to boost its energy independence
Romania is using all energy resources available, including natural gas as the country advances rapidly with Neptun Deep gas project and new wind and...
Germany
Germany removes key debt brake budget limits in historic move
Rushing to arrive at a workable arrangement before the new post-election German parliament convened on March 25, Friedrich Merz’s victorious CDU/CSU bloc and the...
Renewables
Caspian-Black Sea Green Energy Corridor countries push project forward
The Ministers of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Hungary and Romania met in Budapest on March 10, where they signed a joint letter to EU Energy Commissioner...
Critical Infrastructure
Nord Stream: Still searching for pipe dreams
The unexpected and seemingly uncoordinated start of preliminary "peace negotiations" between the U.S., Russia, (and potentially Ukraine) has fuelled speculation about the future of...
Economy & Business
Global reaction to Trump tariffs only reinforces his use of this tired and risky strategy
True to form, U.S. President Donald Trump disrupted global markets with a three-day surge of tariff announcements, border security negotiations and ultimately a 30-day...
USA
Donald Trump is inaugurated amidst promises of security, stability and prosperity
After storming a frigid Washington D.C. during his extended inauguration festivities on January 20, Donald J Trump, America’s 47th and 45th President, launched a...
Critical Infrastructure
Undeclared “open season” on energy infrastructure in Europe
Russia is claiming it has shot down nine Ukrainian drones that tried to attack the TurkStream pipeline, which carries Russian gas to Europe through...
Electoral Procedures and Fraud
Righteous indignation over Maduro’s inauguration unlikely to change Venezuela’s dark reality
President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela was sworn in on January 10 for his third six-year term. Promising that his third term would be one...
Columns
EU searches for alternatives before Russian gas to Europe via Ukraine stops
The Ukrainian government has repeatedly stated that it will not extend a transit agreement, which has provided political, commercial, technical and legal grounds for...
Zero Tolerance
Is there any hope for a democratic and peaceful Syria?
Most observers will argue that a democratic and peaceful Syria is just a pipedream, but at least in the first weeks since Bashar-al-Assad’s rushed...
Global Energy Supplies
OPEC+ postpones plans to increase production over supply unease
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia, known collectively as OPEC+, decided on December 5 to delay its planned...
The Negroni Diaries
Democrats and Republicans agree, the Athens embassy posting has become a sinecure
The Trump administration has just confirmed what some had suspected for several years now -- that the posting to Athens as U.S. Ambassador has...
Global Energy Insider
COP29: Multilateral diplomatic stalemate circumvented
COP29 in Baku ended in the early hours of November 24, reaching a compromise deal on finance that will advance the global climate agenda...
Zero Tolerance
Lula’s G20 Rio Summit: Forgettable but not inconsequential
Seen from the perspective of a week after the November 19-20 Rio de Janeiro Summit, but before the event has completely receded into the...
The Negroni Diaries
Dear Democrats, about that Harris coronation last summer….
Back in July, we took exception to the decisions by the leadership of the Democratic Party to anoint Kamala Harris to take over President...
Zero Tolerance
IMF pronounces victory over inflation while sounding debt and tariff warnings
The 2024 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) took place in Washington D.C. from October 21...
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan opts for nuclear power following national referendum
Following an October 6 national referendum on the construction of a nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan, an overwhelming majority of voters, totaling 5,561,937 people...
Zero Tolerance
UNGA 2024 overshadowed by Middle East turmoil
At the end of September, as usual, most of the world’s leaders converge on New York for the annual UN General Assembly (UNGA) session...
Azerbaijan
Romania talks bring green power line deal for Caspian Sea – EU energy
At a meeting in Bucharest, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Hungary reached milestone agreements on the establishment of a Green Energy Corridor, aiming at bringing...
Oil & Gas
The plot thickens again for Nord Stream sabotage
New developments and disclosures regarding the act of sabotage that blew up the Nord Stream pipelines from Russia to Germany nearly two years ago,...
Oil & Gas
Hungary, Slovakia sweetheart deal with Brussels keeps the Russian oil flowing through Ukraine
The energy crisis that has been caused by Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine continued after Kyiv imposed in late June of this year a...
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