Features
Gazprom’s business will take at least a decade to recover from the impact of the Ukraine war
The business of Russian gas giant Gazprom will take at least a decade to recover losses incurred from Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to a report commissioned by the company released on June 5.
The Caspian Sea to shrink by a third due to global warming
The Aral Sea has gone. The Caspian Sea may be next. Global warming will see its level fall by up to 18 metres and reduce its surface area by a third thanks to global warming.
LONG READ: Russia’s despair index result is the best ever, while Ukraine’s crashes
The despair index adds unemployment, inflation and poverty to compare what life is like in the bottom third of emerging societies. Currently Russia is enjoying one of its lowest levels of despair, whereas Ukraine is suffering one of its worst.
CEE's authoritarian nationalists seek to 'occupy' Brussels
Populist parties could come first in 11 of the 27 member states in the European Parliament elections, six of which are in Central and Eastern Europe.
Freedom Holding Corporate’s Timur Turlov: I’ve put all my money into the business
In his interview with “Exclusive” on YouTube this April, Timur Turlov, the founder of Freedom Holding Corp., shared his views on entrepreneurship and revealed why his company is so successful.
Southeast European countries look to Algeria to diversify energy supplies
Both Slovenia and Croatia are tapping Algeria for gas imports as the country becomes an important supplier to southern Europe.
CEE countries still lag behind Western Europe on prosperity
Several Central and Eastern European countries still rank in the bottom third of the new Prosperity Index of EU countries published by Erste Group Research.
Polish EU vote is all about Russia
As news multiplies about Russian provocations, disinformation, and sabotage, many Poles are on edge.
The Almaty Half Marathon is helping to develop inclusive sport in Central Asia
Earlier this year the seventh edition of the Almaty Half Marathon took place, organised by the team behind the Almaty Marathon. More than 8,000 people took part, but for the first time a wheelchair category was included for disabled participants.
Soaring wartime salaries are increasing support for Putin amongst the working class
After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine more than a million young Russians fled the country and there was a brief hope that the rest would rise up in protest. Two years on and war wages have made Putin more popular than ever with the working class.
Russia dumping the dollar for the yuan is an imperfect sanctions fix
In 2023 the yuan became the most popular currency on the Moscow Exchange, beating even the dollar, as Russia has been forced to completely remake the way it pays for international trade.
Moldova positions itself to support Ukraine reconstruction
International companies are already setting up in Moldova with the aim of supplying the reconstruction of Ukraine.
INTERVIEW: Infrastructure investment to unlock Moldova’s future export potential
Moldova has already oriented its trade towards Western markets, but to further boost its exports infrastructure investment is needed, says EBRD head of Moldova, Catarina Bjorlin Hansen.
Georgian parliament set to overturn president's veto of 'foreign agents bill'
The overturning of the veto is set to reignite the street protests and spark Western sanctions against the Georgian Dream government.
India exports elections expertise
India doesn’t produce much that other countries want to buy, but as the largest democracy in the world, one of its best exports is its elections expertise.
Russian pivot to the Global South includes unscrupulous army recruiting practices
After launching its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and being sanctioned by the West, Russia has doubled down on its overtures to countries of the Global South.
LONG READ: Ukraine is losing the drone war
Drones have become a game-changer in the full-scale Russo-Ukrainian war and, after an early lead, Ukraine is losing now as Moscow outproduces and out-innovates Kyiv.
Polish centrists learn to love a deficit at last
Running a general government deficit is no longer seen as an irresponsible policy but as an investment in the future.
Croatia emerges as mini economic powerhouse with robust growth projections
The strong performance of its tourism sector and inflows of EU funds helped make Croatia the EU's second fastest growing economy in 2023.
Jaw-dropping discovery: 450,000-year-old tooth unearthed in Iran
Archaeologists have discovered the oldest evidence of occupation in Iran's Central Plateau at Qaleh Kurd Cave in Qazvin, pushing back the timeline of human settlement in the region by over 300,000 years.