Friends of Georgia Hold Strategy Session in Lithuania

The New Friends of Georgia group of countries conferred in an enlarged and upgraded format on September 13-14 in Vilnius. This meeting shows that a strong nucleus of eight countries has developed within the European Union and NATO (alongside the United States in the latter case), supporting an active policy by the two organizations in Europe’s East generally and toward Georgia in particular.

Initiated in 2005 in Tbilisi by the three Baltic states, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, and Bulgaria, the New Friends’ group has matured this year. Georgia’s Black Sea neighbors Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU, while the Czech Republic and Sweden have joined the New Friends of Georgia group. The meeting in Vilnius was the first held at the level of ministers of foreign affairs in full format. The EU’s Special Representative for the South Caucasus, Peter Semneby, participated as an observer, while his Swedish compatriot, Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Bildt, brought Sweden to the table for the first time. [More]

Basescu against Russia's stance on CFE treaty

During the GUAM summit of ex-Soviet states at Baku, the Romanian President Traian Basescu emphasized on the region’s importance for energy security and pointed out the need for reduction of Europe’s dependency on Russian energy.

GUAM (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Republic of Moldova) regional bloc is seen as a counterweight to the Kremlin-dominated Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). [More]

Romanian President Basescu ''reminds'' Russia about troops in Moldova, Georgia

Romanian President Traian Basescu criticized the interpretation of international treaties such as the that of Conventional Forces in Europe during a speech held at a GUAM summit in Baku on Tuesday. He also mentioned the need that Russian troops be withdrawn from the Moldovan Republic and Georgia, a withdrawal that he said should have occurred in 1999.

Romania backed the CFE treaty, Basescu says, but argues that it must be related to Russia’s compliance with its promises at an Istanbul summit last decade, regarding the withdrawal of Russian troups from Moldova. Russian authorities have been warning that they may reconsider Moscow’s involvement with the CFE treaty given the current United States plans for a missile shield in Europe. [More]