Articles
Russian Plane Violated NATO Airspace Over Baltic Sea
A Russian military cargo plane has violated Estonia’s airspace, an incident that prompted the country’s authorities to hand Russia’s ambassador a protest note. Moscow denies any incident took place. As NATO’s easternmost territory, Estonia is an obstacle for a military connection between the Kaliningrad exclave and the rest of Russia.
Nord Stream 2 Returns Amid Favorable Political Conditions
Russia’s vessel Fortuna has resumed laying pipes for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in Danish waters, as informed back on February 6. Although works were suspended amid bad weather conditions, Russia and Germany won a symbolic victory, trying to complete the gas link as favorable conditions materialized.
“Operation Borrell”: Russian Triumph, European Humiliation
Josep Borrell, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, made a horrible mistake, viewed as absolutely unacceptable in diplomacy. His decision to go ahead with the trip to Russia as planned outraged many while what he said and what he did not in Moscow was an even bigger disgrace for the bloc’s top diplomat.
Joe Biden’s Victory and US Relations with Central and Eastern European Countries
The victory of Democratic candidate Joe Biden in the battle for the presidency of the United States, caused concerns among the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) about the future cooperation with the new administration. The upcoming presidency will focus on, among others, reversing Donald Trump’s decisions. Will the relations with CEE countries share a similar fate?
Beijing is Reaching Out to the US
Recently, authorities in Beijing have been signaling that they are ready for cooperation and a fresh start in relations with Washington and the Joe Biden administration. The Chinese officials are very conciliatory and portray the PRC as a non-confrontational party that is reaching out to the new US administration and encouraging it to abandon the former policy of the White House which Beijing perceives as “confrontational.”
Tensions Across the Taiwan Strait
Chinese warplanes, including the H-6K bombers and four J-16 fighter jets, entered Taiwan’s airspace on Saturday, January 23. The administration of Joe Biden immediately backed the island nation. Consequently, tensions between Washington and Beijing will escalate once again.
Huawei in Poland and Hungary. Could it be a part of 5G? – Podcast
Since the beginning of the second decade of the 21st century, Huawei has achieved a leading position on the markets of the Visegrád Group, both in terms of digital infrastructure and mobile devices. During Donald Trump’s presidency (2017-2021), the US authorities made extensive diplomatic efforts to eliminate Huawei from the European Union’s (EU) 5G infrastructure, pointing to political and intelligence threats and the company’s cooperation with the Communist Party of China.
USA Under Attack – A Living Case of Cyber Warfare
The United States is currently undergoing a significant cyberattack. Among over 18,000 potentially affected users, many have been confirmed to operate within the networks of federal agencies, including the State Department, Treasury, Department of Homeland Security, Pentagon, and Department of Energy.
Poland-China Relations in 2021: Current State and Prospects
Despite growing trade and good relations between the presidents of the two countries, communication between Warsaw and Beijing has stalled for some time. Following a period of dynamic development of relationships between 2008 and 2016, the cooperation has weakened under the rule of the United Right (Polish: Zjednoczona Prawica).
“Fuel Charge”: Lukashenko Pays For Russian Help
The Russian government published a regulation allowing Belarus to ship Belarusian oil products destined to third countries through Russian seaports, according to latest publication by the government of Mikhail Mishustin. Belarusian oil export through Russian seaports is on the list of the conditions Moscow imposed on Lukashenko when agreeing to help him during the political crisis in August last year.
Putin, Biden Agree To Extend New START Treaty
The United States and Russia have agreed to extend the New START, an arms control treaty, by five years, marking number one news after Joe Biden’s first phone call as president with Vladimir Putin. This yet does not mean any breakthrough in U.S.-Russia ties as at the same time, Biden raised concerns about the arrest of Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny and Russian aggression on Ukraine.
China – An Unexpected Winner of the Pandemic
Thanks to its relative success in the fight against pandemic, China was the only major economy to report a GDP growth of 2.3% in 2020. The pre-pandemic forecasts suggested that China would become the world’s largest economy in 2035, but, due to its GDP growth and a parallel recession in the US, this might happen even seven years sooner.
Russia Produces More Liquefied Natural Gas
In 2020, Russia’s liquefied natural gas output grew by 3.5 percent year on year. Throughout last year, the country produced 30.5 million tons of LNG, according to data from Rosstat, the Russian federal statistics agency.
Xi Jinping’s Speech in Davos
Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), participated in the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos on January 25. This year it was held virtually. It was his first appearance in Davos in four years, following the one in 2017. The address was Beijing’s manifesto on playing a bigger global role, upholding multilateralism and supporting developing countries.
