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Newsletter
EU Institutions
EU strives to boost ability to detect and prepare for cyber threats
The Belgian Presidency of the European Council on March 6 informally agreed on the Cyber Solidarity Act (CSoA), aiming to build a more resilient,...
Democracy & Human Rights
U.S. joins International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children
On March 7, the office of the spokesperson at the U.S. Department of State issued a media note, clearly meant to be circulated in...
Democracy & Human Rights
Intellexa Commercial Spyware Consortium sanctioned
The U.S. Government announced on March 5 a new set of sanctions on the members of the Intellexa Commercial Spyware Consortium based across Europe....
Democracy & Human Rights
Zimbabwe: U.S. reconfigures sanctions to focus on corruption and human rights
On March 4, three separate U.S. Government Departments/Agencies issued Zimbabwe-specific sanctions guidance, demonstrating how complex and intertwined U.S. sanctions legislation has become and how...
Business and trade regulations
EU Parliament strives to protect energy market from manipulation
Responding to the energy crisis exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the European Parliament approved on February 29 legislation to tackle energy market manipulation...
Russia Sanctions
Russia sanctions remain a powerful tool to support Ukraine’s defense
Western leaders should not dismiss the two-year long sanctions campaign (as opposed to the 2014 Crimea sanctions) as unsuccessful simply because the Kremlin has...
Russia Sanctions
New U.S. Russia sanctions widen scope, adding 500 new targets
The U.S. State Department released a comprehensive list of new sanctions measures on February 23, clearly the culmination of months of preparation in order...
USA
US Democrats overseas to hold primaries in early March
In an election year where most U.S. voters are already sure they will witness a Biden-Trump rematch, few voters residing abroad see the need...
Azerbaijan
Chosen to host COP29, Azerbaijan draws special attention to its energy policy
Azerbaijan’s Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov visited the U.S. this week where he held talks with World Bank representatives, U.S. government officials and investors, discussing...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
Moldova’s 2024 elections: Why it matters
Since the war in Ukraine commenced, the neighboring Republic of Moldova, led by President Maia Sandu, has strongly supported Kyiv. As the tiny, landlocked...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
Clear Direction or Misleading Headlines
In a world full of stories all noisily striving for attention, the individual importance of some of them will be exaggerated through scary headlines...
Terrorism
Washington strongly condemns Houthi attacks on shipping
The U.S. State Department issued a strongly worded condemnation of Houthi attacks on international shipping on February 21st, equating many Houthi attacks with piracy.Washington...
Oil & Gas
Alexandroupolis LNG Terminal going live after test runs
The Gastrade consortium confirmed on February 18 the long anticipated Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) terminal at Alexandroupolis in Greece’s province of Thrace has received...
Energy
Romania sees Black Sea renewable hub, gas production growth
Ambitious projects and cross-border cooperation between the countries in the region are key in order for the Black Sea to become a renewables energy...
Bulgaria
Bulgaria, Romania push regional renewable energy projects
Bulgaria is working with its neighbors to boost energy security and collaborate on joint cross-border projects in natural gas and renewables, according to Bulgaria’s...
Disinformation & Propaganda
Kremlin disinformation efforts in Africa illuminated
The U.S. State Department released a report detailing Kremlin disinformation activities and operatives in Africa on February 12 entitled “The Kremlin’s Efforts to Spread...
Environment
EU law banning greenwashing to empower consumers for the green transition
Companies can no longer market their goods using unfounded claims about their environmental impact and durability, Croatian MEP Bijana Borzan told NE Global in...
Transport
Investors Forum brings the Middle Corridor into EU-wide focus
Huge investment numbers were thrown around in Brussels January 29-30 at the Global Gateway Investors Forum for the European Union – Central Asia Transport...
United Nations
UNRWA blasted for allegations that staffers supported Hamas
The United Nations agency that manages support for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said on January 26 that it is starting an investigation into several employees...
Labor and Human Workforce Futures
A chance to embrace the Future of Work
The Ancient Greek tragedian Sophocles stated that without labor, nothing prospers. In the rapidly evolving landscape of the modern workforce, a seismic shift is...
Democracy & Human Rights
Vatican, Kazakhstan encourage interfaith dialogue
Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev visited Italy last week where he signed several agreements and made his first official visit to the Vatican to meet...
Myanmar
Myanmar’s instability deepens as the world watches silently
Myanmar’s stability has eroded significantly since the 2021 military coup. But the coordinated attacks by multiple separatist and pro-democracy groups in late 2023 has...
Defense & Security
Joint Statement on the Trilateral United States-Japan-Republic of Korea Indo-Pacific Dialogue
The inaugural Trilateral Indo-Pacific Dialogue between the United States Japan and South Korea was held on January 5, with this new format presented as...
Economy & Business
Kazakhstan pursues new economic model, balanced foreign policy
Transitioning to a new economic model, Kazakhstan’s strategic goal is to double its GDP by 2029 and the continuation of a constructive and balanced...
Energy
COP28 focuses on Central Asia’s sustainable future
At COP28, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Kazakhstan organized a Green Projects Pitching Event to spotlight innovative and sustainable initiatives across Central...
Defense & Security
Washington strongly supports Manila in latest confrontation with Beijing
After a difficult year in the loosely defined maritime boundary region between China and the Philippines, including vessel collisions and Chinese use of water...
Africa
Why Africa must be concerned about nuclear threats in Europe
Russia's threat to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in neighboring Belarus, a close ally of the Kremlin, in response to Finland's membership in NATO has,...
Columns
COP28 reaches compromise deal to transition away from fossil fuels
The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) closed on December 13 with a compromise deal. Instead of “phase out” or “phase down,” the agreement...
Environment
Spare a thought for the environment this Christmas
In the run up to the festive season many people will be travelling by plane to visit family and friends. Spending time with loved...
Defense & Security
First Ukraine, now Gaza: the impact of war has set us back on climate change
Discussions of man-made global warming are usually based on a 1-degree Celsius rise since 1880 due to the burning of fossil fuels like coal,...
International Organizations
Stability in the Middle East must involve the whole of the international community
The pacifist Jeannette Rankin once famously claimed that “you can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake”. As the latest...
Global Tourism
Sustainable tourism to help world economies, societies
NE Global sat down with Alessandra Priante, the Director of the UNWTO for Europe, the UN agency that promotes sustainable and responsible tourism, to...
Democracy & Human Rights
Kafka in Kyiv — Why artists count in a time of war when the world has gone to hell one more time….
It was three o'clock in the morning and I was on a train heading to a war zone.I asked myself "why" I was going...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
Playing politics with EU veto power – a very old game
In late November, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, standing alongside visiting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, told the media that he was against the “bilateralization”...
United Kingdom
Ukraine, Middle East will dominate Cameron’s UK foreign policy agenda
David Cameron, who was made Foreign Secretary in a surprise move by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during his cabinet reshuffle on November 13, is...
Palestinian Territories
What will it take to prevent a Gaza reconstruction fiasco?
Let us be unequivocal about the current war between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas - the latter declared this war on Israeli...
Ukraine
Ukraine’s persecuted mayor
Lest it be forgotten, the major thematic issue in post-Maidan and pre-war Ukraine was, and continues to be, the transformation of Ukrainian society along...
Interviews
Cameron’s return as Foreign Secretary raises UK’s international profile
David Cameron, who was made foreign secretary in a surprise move by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during his cabinet reshuffle on November 13, brings...
Armenia
Russia’s powerful economic levers over Armenia
Armenia's relations with its strategic partner Russia are getting worse and worse and its leaders seem to desire a shift in geopolitical orientation towards the West....
Trade
Economy Minister says Kazakhstan to expand investment and diversify trade with Europe
Kazakhstan’s Minister of National Economy, Alibek Kuantyrov, spoke to NE Global in an exclusive interview about his country's relations with Europe, Astana's economic partners,...
Economy & Business
New US actions against corruption and Russian malign influence in the Western Balkans
On November 16, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, known by its acronym OFAC, designated eight individuals and six...
Economy & Business
Rebuilding Ukraine: Opportunities and concerns for foreign businesses
Such is the scale of the effort required to rebuild Ukraine that the World Bank in March 2023 estimated it at $411 billion. That...
ASEAN
Why China’s new map has stirred regional tensions
In the waning days of summer, closely following a BRICS summit and mere days ahead of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Group...
Development Assistance
New DFC commitments to maritime infrastructure projects
The US recently announced two major commitments to funding maritime infrastructure and related commercial projects, one in Sri Lanka and another in Greece through...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
The EU Green Deal is a barrier to trade and global partnerships
There is an English saying that if you can’t see the wood for the trees, then you should step back and then you will...
Transport
Kazakhstan accelerating efforts to expand the strategic Middle Corridor
The Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, which is frequently referred to as the Middle Corridor, is a multilateral institutional development project linking the containerized rail...
Minerals, Mining and Rare Earths
IEA warns transitions bring new risks to energy security
Clean technology and critical mineral supply chains are highly geographically concentrated, the International Energy Agency warned in its World Energy Outlook for 2023 and...
Democracy & Human Rights
Young Iranians fight for a better future
Providing an opportunity for young people around the world to listen to each other and to share their understanding of the fundamental concept of...
Democracy & Human Rights
Lawmakers, NGO reps, human rights experts, Iranian dissidents condemn appointment of Iran’s envoy to UNHRC’s social forum
During a press conference held in Geneva on November 2, lawmakers, NGOs, and Iranian Dissidents condemned the appointment of Iran’s regime envoy to the...
Medicine
World Health Organization highlights Kazakhstan’s historic role
The United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) held a major regional conference and celebration in Astana, Kazakhstan October 23-26 on the subject of Primary...
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