International Organizations

Turkey’s Finance Minister: “We Are No Longer Puppets”

By the Economist

Italian Minister Backs Gates on Turkey Moving “Eastwards”

By AFP

From AFP:   Italy’s foreign minister indicated Thursday he agreed with US Defence Secretary Robert Gates that the European Union’s refusal to embrace Turkey had pushed Ankara "eastwards.

Turkey Calls Charges Turning from West “Dirty Propaganda”

By AFP

Europe Remains America’s Most Powerful Ally

By Joseph S. Nye, Gulf News

From Joseph S. Nye, Gulf News:  The American political scientist Andrew Moravcsik makes the argument that European nations, singly and collectively, are the only states other than the US that are able to "exert global influence across the full spectrum from ‘hard’ to ‘soft’ power.

Getting Russia Right

By Wolfgang Ischinger and Ulrich Weisser, the New York Times

From Wolfgang Ischinger and Ulrich Weisser, the New York Times:  At a NATO summit in Strasbourg in April 2009, a group of experts headed by Madeleine Albright was directed to prepare the ground for a new “strategic concept.

Turkey Proposes NATO Mission to Lift Gaza Blockade

By AFP

From AFP:  A top Turkish official on Wednesday proposed a NATO naval mission to lift the Israeli blockade of the Palestinian Gaza Strip. "NATO should send a fleet to put an end to the embargo," Turkey’s chief negotiator with the European Union, Egemen Bagis told reporters during a trip to Brussels. "It’s just an idea," […]

Gates: If Turkey is Moving Eastward, It was “Pushed by Some in Europe”

By Reuters

From Reuters:  The United States is concerned at a breakdown in Turkey’s relations with Israel and fears Europe’s rebuff of Ankara’s EU aspirations is pushing the pivotal country "eastward," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday.

Georgia Drifts Away from the West

By Matthew Czekaj

The West is losing Georgia, and the West has only itself to blame.  Since the April 2008 NATO Summit in Bucharest, at which the Alliance declared that Georgia (and Ukraine) would become a member, Europe and the United States have done almost nothing to more fully integrate the Caucasian country into the transatlantic community.  The […]

Merkel and Medvedev Support Upgrading Russia-EU Committee on Foreign Policy and Security

By RIA Novosti

From RIA Novosti:  Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and German Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested considering a creation of Russia-EU committee on foreign policy and security at ministerial level. "In particular, the committee could be empowered to become a forum to exchange views on current issues of international politics and security, to develop guidelines for joint civil/military […]

Greece Decreases Participation in International Missions

By AFP

From AFP:  Greece’s military is to massively scale back a peacekeeping mission to Kosovo and cut anti-piracy patrols in Somalia as the nation battles a major debt crisis, the general staff said on Thursday. The move will overall save the military over 23 million euros (28 million dollars), general staff spokesman colonel Nikos Bonoras told […]