The Return of ‘The Rock’: Gibraltar Continues to Roil Anglo-Spanish Relations (8/14)

ryan barnes photo 2By Ryan Barnes, Senior International Trade Specialist, U.S. Department of Commerce

Gibraltar, also known as “The Rock”  for the iconic Rock of Gibraltar that towers over the western entrance of the Mediterranean, is a roughly two and a half square mile patch of land on the southern tip of Spain, straddling the Strait of Gibraltar that separates the European continent from Morocco. Once again, tempers have flared in London and Madrid, this time over Gibraltar’s plans to expand a reef in the Mediterranean, souring an otherwise sound partnership between the United Kingdom and Spain.

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Azerbaijan Chooses TAP over Nabucco to Provide Gas Pipeline to Europe (8/8)

By Caitlin Del Sole, European Affairs Editorial Assistant

After years of fierce competition among Europe’s energy giants, the developers of a major Azerbaijani natural gas field in the Caspian Sea recently picked the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project over the Nabucco West project to transport Caspian natural gas to Europe.  According to the Financial Times, the estimated cost of the project is around $5 billion.   The decision has major implications for European energy requirements and will help ease dependence on Russian gas.

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