The Americas
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Saudi Arabia, Russia may extend OPEC, non-OPEC oil output deal
Plans of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other supplies, especially Russia, to possibly continue curbing oil production for the rest...
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Oil markets nervous after Tillerson sacked, McMaster on his way out
The firing of US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and if President Donald Trump removes H.R. McMaster as national security adviser could impact major...
Archive
Trump’s White House proclaims new (and maybe negotiable) tariffs to take effect in 15 days
US President Donald J. Trump signed a tariff proclamation March 8 at the White House, including a series of carefully-crafted exemptions for NAFTA partners...
Archive
Prompted by Egypt’s Zohr find, Total-Exxon will hunt hydrocarbons off Crete
ATHENS - A French-led consortium from Total and US energy giant ExxonMobil, each with 40% stakes, as well as Hellenic Petroleum, have submitted a...
Cyprus
US political fireworks reach Delphi Economic Forum
The official American presence at the March 1-4 Delphi Economic Forum came close to being overshadowed by the academics, business people, and American political...
Archive
Turkish pressure throws EU East Med energy projects into limbo
DELPHI, Greece – The Turkish diplomatic and military pressure in the Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean in Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) may affect...
Archive
Gas drilling, Navtex fuel Turkey-Cyprus tensions in East Med
ATHENS – The tensions between Greece and Turkey after an incident in the eastern Aegean appear to have been defused, but the standoff between...
Archive
Germany approves Nord Stream-2 as issue over Ukrainian transit lingers
Gazprom’s Nord Stream-2 received the first construction permit from Germany last week as Berlin sees a direct pipeline from Russia as a step towards...
Archive
Greece-Macedonia/FYROM Name Talks: Searching for new momentum after Nimetz Balkan visit
The UN Mediator for the Greece–FYROM/Macedonia Name Dispute, Matthew Nimetz, visited both Athens and Skopje over the January 29-February 1 period. Important issues were discussed...
Archive
Greece-Macedonia/FYROM Name Talks appear to lose the strong momentum seen at the start of 2018
While 2018 opened on a positive note with both Athens and Skopje making hopeful statements and gestures around the New Year pointing to the...
Archive
At Rome ‘Club Med’ summit, Greece gets a line on TAP gas to Italy
As heads of state and government of Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain, or so-called “Club Med,’ convened in Rome on January...
Africa
Governator Schwarzenegger, Commissionator Šefčovič promote Clean Mobility
STRASBOURG – The EU wants to kick-start the European car industry, creating competitive zero and low emission cars, European Commission Vice-President for Energy Union...
Archive
Šefčovič, Pyatt say Greece can help boost EU energy security
PIRAEUS, Greece – Greece’s position as an energy hub that can help the European Union increase its energy security and diversification of supplies, reducing...
Archive
Trump, Tsipras and Washington’s wordsmiths: What is a “responsible debt relief plan” for Greece?
Although much furor has arisen in Greece over the alleged high costs of the planned upgrade of part of the Greek F-16 fighter fleet...
Archive
Trump-Tsipras White House Meeting garners strong Greek interest, but others?
The most significant interaction in Greek PM Alexis Tsipras 5-day US visit was the October 17 meeting/working lunch with US President Donald Trump. ...
Archive
Cyprus, Greece eye East Med gas discoveries for EU export
ATHENS – More offshore hydrocarbon discoveries from the East Mediterranean region similar to Egypt’s giant Zohr field could boost gas exports to Europe.“At the...
Archive
Searching for meaning in Greek PM Tsipras’ planned Washington visit
Since the announcement of a White House meeting for Greek PM Alexis Tsipras last July, issued by the Office of Vice President Pence, observers...
Archive
Not impacted by sanctions, Russia, China ink Siberian exploration deal
Russian oil giant Rosneft and CEFC China Energy Company Limited signed a Strategic Cooperation Agreement to develop projects in Western and Eastern Siberia and...
Archive
Snubbing Turkey, Italy’s ENI will drill off Cyprus
Italian energy major ENI’s bold announcement that it will start a drilling programme in November offshore Cyprus, which not only involves blocks 3 and...
Archive
US’ Russia sanctions undercut Gazprom’s Ukraine tariffs
The new US sanctions against Russia reportedly create the risk of weakening Russian gas monopoly Gazprom’s position in talks with Ukraine on tariffs for...
Archive
Macedonia name dispute: Are the stars aligning for a new U.S. push?
In the shadow of the failed Cyprus talks, another critical regional issue for Greece and the Western Balkans is apparently coming back into sharp...
Archive
US Vice President Pence reaches out to Greek PM Tsipras after Cyprus talks collapse
In a clear attempt to minimize the regional political fallout from the failed Cyprus talks, U.S. Vice President Michael Pence called Greek Prime Minister...
Archive
Concordia Europe Summit: Joe Biden tries to contain Trump’s transatlantic shockwaves
Concordia’s June 6-7 inaugural Europe Summit in Athens covered a wide array of issues from the ongoing refugee crisis, Eurozone disputes, the UN’s Sustainable...
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Concordia's Europe Summit inaugurated in Athens
The inaugural Concordia Europe Summit ran June 6-7 in Athens. Launching the star-studded event, Concordia’s founders, Nicholas Logothetis and Matthew Swift, said Greece...
Archive
OPEC, non-OPEC extend oil cut as cooperation with Russia improves
VIENNA - In an effort to reduce a global crude oil glut and boost prices, Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and...
Archive
US calls for relaxing Gazprom’s stranglehold on EU market
ATHENS – Several key energy projects currently underway in Greece will bring significant quantities of non-Russian gas to Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, and other regional...
Archive
Iran election not to jeopardise nuclear deal, affect oil prices
When Iranians vote to elect a new president on May 19, traders and Mideast observers will be watching, but it is unlikely that Tehran,...
Archive
Oversupply fears push oil prices to five-month lows
Fears of oversupply pushed oil prices to five-month lows on May 5 despite signals that Russia is ready to join the Organization of Petroleum...
Archive
Trump signs order on oil drilling but market is skeptical
As he approaches his first 100 days in office, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on April 28 that could lead to...
Archive
Cyprus inks major deals with foreign energy giants
France’s Total, Italy’s ENI, US ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum signed agreements in Nicosia this week to explore and produce hydrocarbons offshore Cyprus. Total signed...
Archive
Russia, Finland, Iceland warm up to Arctic cooperation
Arctic countries gathered in Arkhangelsk, Russia, to discuss current issues relating to the region. Russian President Vladimir Putin with his Finnish and Icelandic counterparts...
Archive
Go West (Again)! Digital Policy Minister Nikos Pappas visits Trump’s Washington
Greece’s Syriza-ANEL (Independent Greeks) coalition government simply won’t back off from its efforts to expand contacts with the Trump Administration, with the third minister...
Archive
For March 25th at least, Greece comes in from the cold to meet the Trump Administration
For the traditional White House celebration of Greek Independence Day (March 25), everything has always been beautiful, regardless of which party currently holds the...
Archive
US, NATO could play a role in East Med energy security
DELPHI, Greece - The United States and NATO will need to have a military presence in the East Mediterranean to protect the energy resources...
Archive
Trump unveils his “Hard Power Budget” delineating elements of an American withdrawal from global leadership, if approved
The screaming had already started well before President Trump revealed his proposals for a “Hard Power Budget” March 16, since the main budget outlines...
Archive
Brief encounters of the first kind: Top U.S. and Greek diplomats meet
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias in Washington March 13, just hours before Tillerson planned to depart...
Archive
Will Trump’s budget proposals eviscerate America’s smart power?
Since the Trump Administration’s first budget blueprint was circulated at the end of February, Washington has been abuzz with rumors about where massive budget...
Archive
US backs Greece’s efforts to build EU energy connections
DELPHI, Greece - The United States strongly supports Greece’s efforts to build its energy connections with Europe, US Ambassador to Athens Geoffrey Pyatt told...
Archive
Pump up the volume: Where is Secretary of State Tillerson’s department anyway?
The relative silence from the State Department over the first month of the Trump Administration has led some to an eerie conclusion that Secretary...
Archive
EU hesitation puts Arctic plans on ice
BRUSSELS – The European Union needs to play an active role in the Arctic instead of simply observing the developments in the region, European...
Archive
Tillerson’s arrival at the State Department calms the waters, for now
The arrival of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the State Department February 1 (he was sworn in the night before) seems to have...
Albania
Ambassador Pyatt says US wants EU energy deal to block Russia
ATHENS – The United States will continue to work with the European Union to promote diversification of energy supplies and lessen dependence on Russia,...
Archive
State Department senior officer turnover significant but not a politically-driven mass resignation
Quite a few screaming headlines were generated in the U.S. press when it was announced Under Secretary of State for Management (called “M” at...
Archive
Greek Ministers attend event linked to Trump inauguration hoping to project message of respectability
At first glance one reads that tile and thinks, “So what’s new, that’s all the Greek political class ever does when invited abroad, there’s...
Archive
Exxon keeps Russian Arctic assets frozen with an eye on Tillerson
Only a week to go until Donald Trump officially becomes US President, pundits are still trying to predict the policies of his administration, including...
Energy
Eight years later, Obama bars Arctic oil, gas leasing
In a move to build and possibly preserve his environmental legacy, US President Barack Obama has put an "indefinite" ban on oil and gas...
Archive
Professor Obama Salutes Greece, Democracy in Athens “Globalization” Speech
President (and today Professor of Government) Barack Obama concluded his Greece visit with an inspiring speech November 16 at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural...
Archive
Obama’s Greece Visit – Dancing around the Greek debt minefield
First and foremost it was a great relief to see U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew step off the plane and quietly slip into the...
Archive
Obama’s Greece Visit – Desperately Seeking Symbolism
Surely by now everyone has taken a deep breath and accepted Donald Trump’s victory on November 8. Most analysts needed a number of...
Archive
Anti-OPEC Trump wild card for oil prices
Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election means his administration is likely to focus on domestic oil projects, leading to a prolonged period...
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