On Friday, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe reported several instances in which members of the Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) were denied access to important investigative areas in parts of the Luhansk region not controlled by the Ukrainian government.

During a press statement on Friday, Deputy Chief Monitor of the OSCE’s SMM to Ukraine Alexander Hug reported that the monitoring mission has found it increasingly difficult to gain access to areas in the so-called …

The economic sanctions that the West imposed against Russia over its actions in eastern Ukraine have led Russian President Vladimir Putin to seek a unified resolution to the situation in Syria, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest stated.

Speaking during his annual end-of-the-year news conference, Putin said he was convinced that Washington was prepared to "move toward settling the issues that can only be settled through joint efforts." The Russian President went on to assert that the …

Tallinn has accused Russia of violating its airspace. According to the country's Defense Ministry, a Russian Antonov An-72 military transport plane breached Estonian airspace for less than a minute on Thursday. The incident occured near Vaindloo island, off the country’s northern coast on the Baltic Sea. 

According the its flight plan, the An-72 was supposed to stay in international airspace, though it flew over Estonian territory without attempting to contact Estonian dispatchers. 

The …

RIA Novosti reported that the Paris Court of Appeals refused to suspend the decision to seize French assets belonging to Yukos Oil Company. The Russian Federation recently moved to suspend enforcement of The Hague Court’s decision to confiscate the Russian property, as well as the order to pay $50 billion to the former shareholders of Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s company.

In mid-June, the courts in Belgium and France seized several Russian assets, especially the accounts of a number of companies and …

The construction of the second branch of the gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea for transporting natural gas from Russia to Germany is causing heated debates in the European Union.

The controversial issue of the construction of the new gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 will be, according to reports from the diplomatic community, one of the themes of the EU summit in Brussels on Friday, December 18th. According to the DPA agency, the final document of the meeting of the Heads of State and Government …

British and French companies won the first tenders for gas supply to Ukraine for the EBRD.

Noble Clean Fuels Ltd (United Kingdom) and ENGIE SA (France) won the first three tenders for gas supply to the joint-stock company Naftogaz of Ukraine. These were funded by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), according to the Naftogaz Press Service.

Naftogaz and the EBRD have successfully completed the first three tenders for gas supply to Ukraine with a mortgage loan.  The …

Canadian multinational aerospace and transportation company Bombardier is interested in a possible joint venture with the Electron Corporation and the Lviv Locomotive Repair Plant.  Bombardier and engineering giant, Siemens are ready to invest in production of railway products within the territory of Ukraine.

In a press conference, the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, Andriy Pivovarsky, elaborated on the shared interests. "We have confirmation from Bombardier and Siemens about their …

On 17th December, Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with the Ukrainian presidential envoy for Crimean Tatar People’s Affairs, Mustafa Dzhemilev, Anadolu reported. The meeting took place in a hotel in Konya. The Turkish Vice Prime Minister, Yalçın Akdoğan also participated in the meeting, which lasted about 40 minutes. Neither of the parties has disclosed the details of their discussions.

A sizeable portion of the Crimean Tatar Diaspora (more than 1000 people) live in Turkey. In …