Ankara Bars

By Niall Green - World Socialist Web SiteGreat power rivalries and the Nabucco pipeline projectLeading European energy companies, backed by the European Union and the United States, signed an accord last month to construct a major new natural gas pipeline network from the Caspian Sea to Western Europe.The Nabucco pipeline, a 7.9 billion euro ($11 billion) project, will pass through Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary before terminating at a massive Austrian energy distribution center. Governme

Obama’s geopolitical demarche in Russia’s backyard is moving ahead nicely — for the present, notes Eric WalbergFirst there was the election in Bulgaria 5 July which brought a new party to power — Boyko Borisov’s Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria. Borisov, or Batman, as he is affectionately called, was a Communist-era policeman who subsequently established a prosperous private security business and has been the mayor of Sofia since 2005. He campaigned on the usual — to fight corruptio

Iran hidden in Nabucco agreement to avoid risking US support, say Nabucco officialsSome Nabucco officials claim that the agreement signed by the prime ministers of Turkey, Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania included provisions for Iranian involvement hidden in some articles.Although initially deemed an integral part of the grand Nabucco pipeline project that aims to transport Caspian and Middle Eastern natural gas to European markets, Iran was left out of the signing ceremony of the intergov

by Keith Richmond The European Union has signed a groundbreaking deal with Turkey to deliver gas from countries around the Caspian basin straight to the heart of the EU. The £7.75 billion Nabucco pipeline will run from Erzurum in eastern Turkey through Ankara to Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary to Baumgarten near Vienna in Austria. The project – much talked about and long delayed since it was initially put forward in 2002 – was finally agreed this week, although it is not due to come on stream un

EurActiv NetworkAnkara to host Nabucco signing ceremonyPublished: Monday 6 July 2009An inter-governmental agreement to build the Nabucco gas pipeline, which is aimed at decreasing the EU’s dependence on Russian gas, is due to be signed on 13 July in Ankara, the European Commission has announced.Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Austria – the pipeline’s five transit countries – have agreed to sign the accord, the Commission announced on Friday (3 July). However, it is not yet clear who will