Since the US Presidential election there’s been a debate in Europe over a possible ceasefire agreement and the security guarantees Ukraine needs to deter Russia from resuming hostilities. A European ground operation in Ukraine is a welcome idea but only if it can be backed up by the US.
The United States is sanctioning major targets in Russia’s energy sector, the primary source of revenue fueling Russia’s war against Ukraine. The Department of State is imposing sanctions on nearly 80 individuals and entities. Concurrently, the Department of the Treasury is designating more than 150 individuals and entities and individuals and identifying 183 vessels as blocked property.
New energy sector determination targets Russia’s primary revenue source with sanctions against Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas, more than 180 vessels, and dozens of oil traders, oilfield service providers, insurance companies, and energy officials. Dive into the details of the U.S. Treasury’s latest sanctions.
The EU Commission has disbursed today the first €3 billion tranche of its exceptional Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) loan for Ukraine, which will be repaid with proceeds from immobilised Russian State assets in the EU. This loan, amounting up to €18.1 billion, represents the EU’s contribution to the G7-led Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) loans initiative.
In the context of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and a new US administration taking office, the topics to be discussed will primarily focus on efforts to strengthen NATO defence and deterrence, the delivery of military assistance to Ukraine, and a closer cooperation between the EU and NATO.
Today, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) announced additional security assistance support to meet Ukraine’s critical security and defense needs as part of the surge of security assistance the President directed to put Ukraine “in the best possible position”.
The following excerpt comes from the draft election program 2025 of Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), expected to be officially adopted at the party’s Federal Conference on January 11 and 12, 2025. Insight EU has selected the chapter titled “Time for Security”, which outlines the party’s positions on critical international relations, including its stance toward the United States, China, and Russia. This translation, prepared with the support of ChatGPT, aims
Europe is confronted with a rise of economic statecraft in a more polycentric and confrontational geopolitical landscape. Experts at the European Policy Centre analyse the changes the sanctions policy has undergone in recent years, requiring a more integrated and assertive EU approach to sanctions.
Recent assaults on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, including a major attack on 25 December that caused some reactor units at the country’s three operational plants to once again reduce their operating power for several hours, have reduced the stability of Ukraine’s electrical grid. All affected reactor units subsequently returned to nominal full power.
In an extraordinary meeting of the Gas Coordination Group held on 2 January 2025, the EU Commission and the EU Member States from the Central and Eastern Europe took stock of the situation.
According to the Gazprom’s first preliminary estimates, in 2024, global gas consumption has grown by more than 100 billion cubic meters. The bulk of the growth is attributable to Russia, China, and India.
The United States is imposing sanctions under the Global Magnitsky sanctions program on Olesya Mendeleeva for her role in the arbitrary detention of Moscow city councilor and human rights defender Alexei Gorinov.
The EIB is helping Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s national electricity transmission system operator, to build protective anti-drone shelters to safeguard critical power substations. The funding aims to strengthen the resilience of Ukraine’s energy system amidst Russia’s ongoing military aggression.
The United States is designating Bidzina Grigoris Dze Ivanishvili, founder and honorary chairman of Georgia’s ruling party, Georgian Dream, for undermining the democratic and Euro-Atlantic future of Georgia for the benefit of the Russian Federation.
The EU strongly condemns the deliberate destruction of Europe’s critical infrastructure. The suspected vessel is part of Russia’s shadow fleet, which threatens security and the environment, while funding Russia’s war budget: “We will propose further measures, including sanctions, to target this fleet”.
“NATO remains absolutely the cornerstone of our security, all the more after the accession of Finland and Sweden, and it must be able to look not only towards its eastern flank, but also towards its southern flank. But, security means many other things. It means critical infrastructures, it means artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, it means raw materials, it means supply chains, it means a new and more effective foreign and cooperation
When the EU introduced temporary protection for displaced people from Ukraine in 2022, some Member States extended this protection to other categories of persons fleeing from Ukraine, e.g. people without any permanent permit of residence in Ukraine. In its judgment, the Court of Justice confirms that, in such a case, a Member State may withdraw the benefit of temporary protection from those persons. However, such persons may not be the
EU leaders discussed Ukraine, the Middle East, the EU in the world, resilience and preparedness, migration and foreign policy issues. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, attended the meeting.
Brussels, 19 December 2024 (OR. en) From: General Secretariat of the Council To: Delegations Subject:
How can we understand the notion of intelligence disclosure? This article discusses why states sometimes choose to disclose secret intelligence, and what the potential implications of intelligence disclosures may be. It suggests that while the abundance of intelligence disclosures in recent years may point to a more “transparent” role of secret services, disclosures have more importantly opened a debate about the boundaries between policy and intelligence practice.
In her address to MEPs, Georgia’s President Zourabichvili discussed the protest movement sweeping Georgia since the disputed parliamentary elections in October: “In some ways, we feel like we are back in 1921”, she said, “as scenes are repeating themselves.”
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