Special Analysis

After Croatia’s accession to the European Union in July 2013 and the “Enlargement Report” for 2014 of the European Commission – which recommended granting the EU candidate status to Albania and the Western Balkans’ countries including, for the fifth time in a row, the opening of accession negotiations with the …

1. The Western Balkans area is situated along the main fault line of the Huntington-type “clash of civilizations” in Europe: a) Between Christianity and Islam – resulted in the main Muslim enclave in Europe (Albania + Kosovo) b) Between Western Christianity (Catholic/Protestant) and Orthodoxy – resulting in splitting the Slavic …

In the Balkan region, new geopolitical forces are playing an increasingly role and old actors seem to be losing their influence. The gradual decline of U.S. leadership coincides with the Eurozone recession that makes the EU to be perceived as less disposed to offer to the Balkan states a form …

The evolution of the Syrian crisis and its influence upon the neighboring states and the major world actors, the regional consequences of the “Arab Spring” and, not least, the recent announcements about the beginning of the exploitation of the gas resources of the Leviathan offshore deposits are only a few …

The recent developments in Egypt and Turkey, as well as the May 11, 2013 general election in Pakistan, that marked the first transition between civilian governments in a country ruled by the military for more than half of its history, brought to the attention the complex phenomena resulting from the …

As recently as March 2013, Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Mr. Ahmet Davutoglu, invoked the legacy of the Ottoman Empire and nostalgically spoke of the time when Yemen and Skopje were part of the same country.[i]This denoted a feeling of power and influence which the Turkish government was experiencing at the time, …

Introducere Politica externă a Federaţiei Ruse a fost întotdeauna structurată pe cinci mari linii directoare de acţiune, dintre care două, de altfel şi cele mai vizibile în ultimii douăzeci de ani, vizează relaţia cu Occidentul: Statele Unite ale Americii şi Uniunea Europeană. Celelalte trei direcţii au ca ţintă Asia de …

The consequences of the recent decision regarding the Shah Deniz (Caspian Sea) natural gas’ supply route to Europe, as well as the evolution of the war in Syria and the Iran developments brought to attention the even more complex realities of countries in the South Caucasus, an area that always …

The Boston Marathon bombing in April 2013 abruptly brought to attention the situation in the North Caucasus where, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russia faces the same threat of radical Islam as the West does elsewhere. Most observers, who label the North Caucasus “Russia’s southern underbelly”, agree that the …

The recent election of Pope Francis I (Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Argentine of Italian origin), who comes from the Jesuit order, to become the head of the Roman Catholic Church and the State of Vatican, as well as the circumstances that triggered the unusual decision of his predecessor Benedict XVI …