The ninth round of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks between the United States and the European Union concluded last Friday in New York City. As said to reporters by EU Chief Negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero at the closing press conference, the delegations from the two sides discussed “all three pillars of the negotiations: […]TTIP 9th Round marked by American disappointment: Will some optimism save this trade agreement?
April 28, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The ninth round of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks between the United States and the European Union concluded last Friday in New York City. As said to reporters by EU Chief Negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero at the closing press conference, the delegations from the two sides discussed “all three pillars of the negotiations: […]The EU threatens to occupy Libya militarily; is another colonial war brewing?
April 27, 2015 by Leave a Comment
It was really deplorable to watch the 28 EU leaders who gathered in Brussels last week after the hecatombs of drowned emigrants, to solemnly discuss aggressive military operations on the soil and the sea ports of their Mediterranean neighbours. They decided to use military force and thus kill people, in order to forcefully reverse the […]A Sting Exclusive: “Our ambition is by 2020 Indonesia to become an emerging power of World’s Maritime Access”, reveals the Chargé d’Affaires at the Embassy of Indonesia in Brussels, treating WEF, ASEAN and EU-Indonesia relations on the eve of the World Economic Forum East Asia 2015 in Jakarta
April 18, 2015 by Leave a Comment
On the eve of the World Economic Forum East Asia 2015 the European Sting hosted His Excellency Mr Ignacio Kristanyo Hardojo, Minister and Deputy Chief of the Indonesian Embassy to the European Union. Mr Kristanyo talked exclusively to the European Sting in Brussels on the importance of Jakarta being the host city this year of the […]Does the West reserve the fate of Libya and Syria for others? How does this relate to the EU’s Neighborhood Policy?
April 16, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Last Monday the High Representative and Vice-president of the European Commission Federica Mogherini delivered the opening speech, in the ministerial meeting of EU’s Southern partners, in the context of the European Neighborhood Policy that took place in Barcelona. At some point she noticed that out of the 38 foreign ministers who were supposed to participate […]Does Greece really weigh what is asking for today in Russia?
April 8, 2015 by
Today is the day that Alexis Tsipras meets Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss about business and trade under a spiritual Easter atmosphere for the “Orthodox brothers”. The date of this summit was strategically decided to be this week, in order to put some pressure, at least this is what the Greeks believe, to the European leaders-creditors who […]Can Obama attract Iran close to the US sphere of influence?
April 7, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The best indications about the fairness of a deal are that all the parties directly involved in it can claim victory, and when it comes to the detailed terms they feel they didn’t get exactly what they wanted. This is exactly what happened after the six major world powers (the P5+1 group of countries, the […]EU-US to miss 2015 deadline and even lose Germany’s support in TTIP’s darkest week yet
March 31, 2015 by 1 Comment
What many TTIP supporters were afraid of – and many acute observers were expecting – was announced officially last week: The EU and United States will likely miss a 2015 deadline to conclude what would be the world’s biggest-ever free trade deal. Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency, told reporters […]Immigration crisis at its very worst: EU to outsource rescue business to North Africa?
March 24, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The freshly released statistics on immigration, which were published by Eurostat last Friday, show that 2014 has been a negative record year for the European Union. Last year, 626,000 people applied for asylum to the EU, with the number of Syrian asylum applicants alone rising to 122,800 from 50,000 in 2013. What those statistics are saying […]Have Europe’s Ukrainian wounds begun to heal?
March 23, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The wounds the Ukrainian civil war has inflicted on Europe have now stopped bleeding and if not begun healing at least they claim no more fatalities. The Minsk II agreement is holding well and the Europeans, most of them, have made clear to the Americans that there is no chance of starting a new war […]Can the US-Iran rapprochement change the world?
March 19, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The United States global gendarmes and the Shiite Iran were brought together in a common fight against the Islamic States murderers in Iraq and Syria, thus opening the way for a wider understanding between the two until recently sworn enemies. The American government saw one more major geostrategic advantage in the rapprochement with Tehran. And […]Sanctions on Russia to be the biggest unity test at this European Council
March 17, 2015 by 1 Comment
The relations between the European Union and Russia, as well as the entire, delicate situation in Ukraine, will be discussed at the European Council commencing this Thursday, although no big news are likely to come. EU leaders have not yet agreed on how to proceed on Russian sanctions, but they are unlikely to reach agreement […]Only the Americans are unhappy with the ceasefire agreement in eastern Ukraine
March 12, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Despite the fact that the Minsk ceasefire agreement is holding more or less well and the bloodshed in eastern Ukraine has stopped, the Americans seem quite unhappy. They insist on the need to supply the Ukrainians with heavy armaments to continue the war, this time clearly against Putin’s Russia. Let’s follow the facts. On 25 […]Mobile World Congress 2015 first to debate EU’s new stance on Net Neutrality and Roaming Charges
March 7, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Did you really think that Christmas 2015 would be the perfect chance to travel abroad in Europe, do your shopping in London or Paris and call your folks back home for wishes at zero roaming cost? More so, did you really think that Christmas 2015 would be the perfect chance for you to Skype with your pal without […]“Leaked” TTIP document breaks post 8th negotiations round silence and opens door to critics
March 3, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The 9th round of the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations is a bit more than one month and a half away, but the evolutions of the last days are certainly bound to influence and shape future talks. Last week a leaked draft of what the European Union would like to exclude from a new trade […]The West and Russia accomplished the dismembering and the economic destruction of Ukraine
March 2, 2015 by Leave a Comment
With the Minsk Agreement the West and Russia finally got what they wanted or close to that from Ukraine, not minding much about leaving the miserable country in ruins, its map ruthlessly chopped and the economy in a perfect chaos. On the one side the EU or rather Berlin and Paris plus Washington and on […]Minsk “ceasefire” leaves more doubts than safety, with EU already planning steps further
February 24, 2015 by Leave a Comment
When the EU’s Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini said that the Minsk ceasefire deal was important “but not definitive”, at the morrow of the agreement, everyone knew she was right. Minsk agreement was a crucial happening, in which a big step towards peace between Russia and Ukraine was taken given the delicate moment, but only a step. […]Greece and Ukraine main items on EU28 menu; the course is set
February 12, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The world community will be watching very closely today’s gathering of the 28 leaders of the European Union in Brussels. The reason is that its agenda includes two crucial issues; the economic fate of Greece and a discussion on the outcome of a conference in Minsk, Belarus for the future of Ukraine. Yesterday afternoon both […]The eighth round of TTIP negotiations concludes in Brussels amid scepticism and new fears
February 10, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The eighth round of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), negotiations between the European Union and the United States, concluded last Friday in Brussels. It might be that the entire world is looking towards Ukraine and all media are focusing on the severe crisis between the former Soviet Republic and Russia, but it seems that […]Europe, US and Russia haggle over Ukraine’s convulsing body; Russians and Americans press on for an all out civil war
February 9, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Germany and France are alarmed at the prospect that the Americans could turn Ukraine into an unbelievable inferno, by overtly delivering heavy armaments to Kiev. In such an event implications on Europe’s security will be vast. The French President François Hollande and the German Chancellor Angela Merkel rushed to Moscow last Friday and met the […]“China is the only BRICS country to have either met or possibly slightly surpassed my expectations”, BRICS inventor Jim O’ Neil from Switzerland; the Sting reports live from World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos
January 28, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Being at the second day of the World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos a session that monopolised the interest of the world was titled “The BRICS Agenda”. It was there where everybody was anticipating to see how the BRICS countries contribute to the global economy. Most importantly we were eager to see the reasons behind their […]“We have to do a better job of creating alternatives to violent extremism”, US Secretary of State John Kerry from Switzerland; the Sting reports live from World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos
January 27, 2015 by Leave a Comment
There was probably no need for Professor Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, to welcome an “old friend and supporter” of the foundation by mentioning the magnitude of the current geopolitical crises, for us to understand what John Kerry’s speech would have been focused on. Almost everybody at the small […]“Financial crisis will not happen in China!”, the Chinese Premier underlines from Switzerland; the Sting reports live from World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos
January 26, 2015 by 1 Comment
On the first day of the World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos it was the turn of the Chinese Premier to take the floor and perform a much awaited speech. Professor Schwab introduced Mr Li Keqiang, Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, with great honour and interest. Mr Keqiang made one of the […]China’s impact as a global investor; the Sting reports live from World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos
January 22, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The Sting continues its exclusive live coverage from the World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos with a critical piece on China. Yesterday afternoon all the panelists took their seats to participate in what was to become a fresh revealing dialogue on Chinese investment around the globe. The panelists of the session were Mr Cai Jin-Yong, Executive […]‘Internal security’ or how to compromise citizens’ rights and also make huge profits
January 22, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Only days if not hours after the Charlie Hebdo tragedy in Paris, some governments and many politicians in Europe called for more and tougher internal security measures. Undoubtedly, such action would compromise the civil liberties of European citizens, but those governments and politicians don’t seem to mind. It seems that for them, further sneaking citizens’ […]Russia to cut gas supplies again: can the EU get back to growth without a solid energy market?
January 21, 2015 by Leave a Comment
“Energy” is a word that may sound a bit alarming in the European Union nowadays. This happens because Europe has a problem: its energy supplies are not secure. The EU’s prospects of remaining a strong, independent economic and political player in the international arena will largely depend on whether the bloc will be able to […]The European Sting live from the World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos
January 20, 2015 by Leave a Comment
So it’s time. The most prominent economic and political congress in the world opens its golden doors today. More than 40 heads of state accompanied by an exclusive selection of 2500 business leaders and social entrepreneurs are arriving this evening in the small city of 10.000 inhabitants at the heart of the Swiss Alps. The 45th […]Breaking news: Juncker’s Commission mutant trojan horse is on the loose in Strasbourg
January 14, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Yesterday in Strasbourg the Parliament, allegedly, took a decisive stance against GMOs in Europe after so many years of letting the matter linger. Almost all European media came out to congratulate the vote that gives the right to the local governments of the member states to “opt-out” and be able to ban “locally” GMO production […]Eurasian Union begins: the giant modelled on the EU is Moscow’s biggest challenge
January 6, 2015 by Leave a Comment
On the first day of 2015, when all the world was waking up ready to taste what this New Year will be like, the treaty creating the Eurasian Economic Union took effect. The new EEU has now become a reality, allowing free movement of trade, services, and capital between Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. What […]Can Kiev make face to mounting economic problems and social unrest?
January 5, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The time of truth for the European Union’s strategy on the Ukrainian question finally came. Brussels is about to let the poor country not only be dismembered, but what will be left of it will be pushed into an economic and political inferno. As it happens, Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker essentially ‘ordered’ Kiev to “bring […]EU-Russia relations: the beginning of a warmer winter?
December 30, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The year 2014 has seen many changes and overturns in the EU-Russia relations, but although the New Year is just a few hours away, there is still time for the last swing. From both sides. Yesterday a few Russian media outlets reported that the High Representative of the European Union Federica Mogherini stated that Western powers […]Why and how did ISIS and Muslim fundamentalism gain momentum this year?
December 29, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The European Investment Bank chose the perfect timing at the end of the year to take stock of its support to Egypt, or probably not? On 22 December 2014 EIB published a Press release entitled “Supporting Egypt’s democratic transition: a priority for EIB totalling more than €800 m of projects financed over the last three […]Merry Christmas from Erdogan, Putin, Mogherini and the Polish firefighter
December 24, 2014 by Leave a Comment
One month is more than enough in international diplomacy to flip the world. During the last month of this long 2014 we were cought by surprise by the speed of the evolutions regarding the “EU-Turkey” project. Things were changing so fast every week of this December that even the most experienced analysts remained numb and thus preferred […]The British “nonsense”, the relaxed Commissioner and the TTIP “chiaroscuro” at this week’s Council
December 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment
“The EU and the US should make all efforts to conclude negotiations on an ambitious, comprehensive and mutually beneficial TTIP by the end of 2015”, was the first conclusion of the first day of the 18-19 December EU Council. That our EU leaders are in an unprecedented rush to conclude the “notorious” trade deal with the […]
