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Plane Crash Mars Naval Celebration A Su-24M bomber crashed yesterday at the main base of the Baltic Fleet in the city of Balstiisk during Naval Fleet Day celebrations attended by Defense Minister and First Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov. In spite of the emergency, three other bombers did not return immediately to the base, as they were supposed to. One of them was only able to land on the second attempt. The festivities, which Ivanov observed from aboard the flagship destroyer Perservering, included a naval parade and parachute competitions, with an airshow as the finale. Four Su-24M bombers from the...

When Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev visited Riga on July 18, the overriding topic of discussion was how best to send Kazakh oil to energy-hungry markets in Europe and Scandinavian via Latvia. Nazarbayev did his best to give the impression of a pragmatic leader unburdened by the political strains caused by the long-standing disputes between his closest ally -- Moscow -- and West European powers over energy issues. His time in Riga provided an impressive display of his multi-vector approach to interstate relations. Answering questions from Latvian journalists, Nazarbayev stressed that Kazakhstan has no intention of constructing a transportation route to...

Poles act to counter Russia power plays Judy Dempsey International Herald Tribune TUESDAY, MAY 30, 2006 BERLIN Despite immense resistance from Russia, the largest energy group in Poland has signed a deal to buy a majority stake in a Lithuanian oil refinery from a subsidiary of Yukos, the energy giant that was bankrupted by Kremlin tax claims. Orlen, the biggest oil refining company in Poland, will pay $1.49 billion to Yukos International UK, based in the Netherlands, for its 53.7 percent stake in the Mazeikiu Nafta refinery. The Lithuanian government will also sell its 30.7 percent stake in the refiner...

Russian-German pipeline ‘environmental danger’ say Poles Poland might demand compensation from Russia for environmental damage caused by the construction of the already controversial Baltic gas pipeline. Report by Slawek Szerfs 16.05.06 Environmental protection specialists are sounding the alarm that the construction of the Russian-German Northern gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea may cause an ecological disaster. Poland has been viewing the potential consequences and has not excluded compensation claims. The economy ministry in Warsaw has been in contact with the European Environmental Control Commission for some time already to acquaint itself with the construction plans and schedule of this gigantic...

RIGA, Latvia, May 4, 2006 – Special forces operators from the U.S., Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Poland and Norway concluded exercise Shamrock Key 2006 here April 27. The annual two-week exercise provided an opportunity for European-based NATO special operations forces to train together with local forces in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. The training consisted of a series of joint military exercises conducted among theater security cooperation partners in the Baltic region of Europe. "The U.S. military is here to train with the armed forces of Latvia, Norway, Poland, Lithuania, and Estonia, to strengthen our interoperability and our mutual ability to protect...

VILNIUS (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney launched one of Washington's sharpest attacks on President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, accusing Russia of backsliding on democracy and using its energy supplies to blackmail neighbors. The Kremlin rejected Cheney's charges, saying his comments were completely incomprehensible. "Russia has a choice to make," Cheney told Baltic and Black Sea leaders in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, calling on Moscow to return to democratic reforms at a time of increasingly chilly relations between the two former Cold War rivals. Cheney criticized Moscow for playing power politics with its vast energy reserves at a time of...

Baltic Countries to Boost NATO Unit BRUSSELS, March 22 (UPI) -- Defense ministers from six Baltic Sea countries Tuesday agreed to strengthen military cooperation and create a combat group to work in coordination with NATO. At a meeting in Latvia, ministers from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany and Denmark agreed to boost their cooperation and involvement with the North East Multinational Corps, a multinational NATO unit based in Stettin, Poland. "We agreed to work towards maximizing the role of the Stettin Headquarters in NATO's 2007 Afghanistan operation," Danish Defense Minister Soren Gade said in a statement after the meeting. In...

Polish president rips German Baltic gas pipeline ahead of Berlin trip Berlin, March 4,IRNA Germany-Poland-Kaczynski Polish President Lech Kaczynski on Saturday harshly criticized the construction of a new gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany ahead of his first-ever visit to Germany next week. "There are no economic reasons for this pipeline. We are allies of Germany, joint members of NATO and the EU. So why is there a need for this pipeline bypassing Poland?" Kaczynski told Der Spiegel news magazine in an interview due to hit the newsstands on Sunday. Kaczynski who took office on December...

Poles Over the Baltic 25 January 2006 Since the start of January, Polish pilots have been patrolling the air space of the three Baltic states, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. Poland is yet another NATO country to be monitoring the airspace over the Baltic states-admitted to NATO in March 2004-as part of the Air Policing mission. None of these countries has combat aircraft of its own, and in keeping with Alliance standards, other NATO members are responsible for the security of the Baltic skies using their own aircraft. Poland has deployed four MiG-29 fighter planes (see photo) to perform this mission,...

On the real problems of the Russian-speaking population of the Baltic countries Yes, I loved the Baltic States in the Soviet days: we had a dacha in Estonia; my TV career (however strange it may be) started in Latvia; in Lithuania I misbehaved with the local girls and very nearly wed two of them. I love the present Baltic countries no less, and I am frequently there on music business or just because. How I do evaluate them? I will begin with the brutal anti-Baltic campaign, already underway for the last several years in the tone of the Russian state...

Baltic girls forced into sex slavery By Martha Buckley BBC News Five Albanian pimps have been convicted of sex trafficking offences after a trial at Southwark Crown Court. The inquiry was triggered by an investigation into the trade by the BBC's Six O'Clock News. On 31 October 2004, a 16-year-old Lithuanian girl made what was probably the biggest mistake of her young life when she agreed to go on a trip to the UK with a group of new friends. Instead of the few days of fun she had been promised, she ended up being sold into prostitution in an...

Russia, Poland at loggerheads over Gazprom move In Short: Poland sees its energy security seriously threatened by a recent request by Russia's natural gas giant Gazprom to re-negotiate its long-term gas delivery contract with Warsaw. Brief News: Russia's Gazprom has expressed its intention to revise its gas supply contract with Warsaw. The contract expires in 2022. According to Gazprom, it is normal business procedure to regularly revise pricing conditions of gas supplies. However, Poland, which receives 42% of its gas from Gazprom, sees no reason to re-negotiate the terms of the 1996 supply agreement. Gazprom's move follows protests by Warsaw...

Moscow denies its Baltic gas pipeline will bypass Poland 2005-10-06, 09:57 Russian authorities informed that the new pipeline to be built on the bottom of the Baltic sea would have links to a number of European countries including Poland. The Russian ambassador to the European Union said that the new pipeline should connect not divide. Financial analysts, however, stress the fact that regardless of the political importance of the project, its financial side is one big mystery – there is no source of financing and it is unclear if Russians can provide sufficient amounts of gas to make the whole...

The failure of various forms of statism in the Third World, the bankruptcy of communism in the former Soviet bloc and China, and the high long-term unemployment and relative stagnation in Western European countries with overregulated economies has forced a revision of the development paradigm in favor of the market and private property -- in short, a more limited state. But the battle over ideas and policies is far from over. As a matter of fact, it will never end, as the forces of statism regroup rather than capitulate. This is why it is so important to analyze which policies...

Legal analyses show that Russian-German gas pipeline may be illegal From Poland A.M. Even though there is still a chance for halting the construction of the gas pipeline between Russia and Germany through the Baltic Sea, the Polish government has not undertaken any legal action to block the construction. According to analysts, in order to block the investment the new government should first of all call into question the agreement signed between the two countries. Legal analyses have revealed that the document violates certain free trade principles. Robert Amsterdam from the Amsterdam & Peroff law office claims that Poland could...

Tricky Question Goes down the Tubes Vladimir Putin and Gerhard Schroeder Insure Themselves against Politic Risks in Ukraine. First Persons Russian President Vladimir Putin flew to Berlin yesterday and met with both candidate for chancellor and was on hand for the signing of the agreement between Gazprom and the German concerns E.ON and BASF on the construction of the North European Gas Pipeline. In addition, Putin commented with glee on yesterday's events in Ukraine. His comments were somewhat mystifying, in the opinion of Kommersant special correspondent . Gazprom head Alexey Miller looked like the ca that ate the mouse as...

Russia: Putin, Schroeder Ratify Pipeline Deal By Claire Bigg Russian and German energy firms today signed a deal to build a $5.7 billion pipeline under the Baltic Sea to link the two countries. The signing comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin is in Berlin to meet German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder today. The pipeline will allow Russia to boost its gas exports to the lucrative Western European market without paying transit fees to Poland and Ukraine. Poland yesterday attacked the deal for having been made without consulting the rest of the European Union. Moscow, 8 September 2005 (RFE/RL) -- President Putin...

MOSCOW (AFX) - Russia is withdrawing its signature from a land and sea border treaty with Estonia that the two countries signed in May, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, adding that the two sides would have to restart negotiations. 'Since the Estonian side has not fulfilled its obligations, we withdraw our signature from this accord,' Lavrov said, quoted by Russia's RIA-Novosti news agency, during a visit to Helsinki. 'There will be no accord... In order to regulate border issues, we will have to restart negotiations,' Lavrov said, adding that he hoped the dispute would not affect relations between Russia...

Polish Air Force will be responsible for protecting the airspace of three Baltic States - NATO members: Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. Poland will send 4 MiG's-29 (2 one-seat versions, the rest 2-seat version) and 59 members of ground crew. Their base will be Siauliai airfield. Two Mig's will be constantly ready for action, the rest stays on alert. This dispatch is a part of NATO obligations.

Poland to patrol Baltic airspace in 2006 Poland will take over the mission of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to patrol Baltic airspace in 2006, the Lithuanian defense ministry said Tuesday. Poland will be the first new NATO member since 1999 to send its air force to take over the alliance's mission, according to a statement released after a meeting between Lithuanian army commander Vladas Tutkus and Poland's air force chief Ryszard Olszewski. NATO forces have patrolled Baltic airspace since March 2004. Its members take turns at deploying patrol aircraft from the Zokniai air base in northern Lithuania. Norway...