On the way to DEMYC seminar

We have to make a very though decisions about our energy safety in coming years and hopefully we will work as one united European Union in towards of Russia and forget some of the separate countries interests in having some special connections. We are gathering here in Ukraine, in the country which was year ago basically blackmailed by Russia on the energy prices and falsely accused on stealing energy.

Today we are in from of a Russia wanting to build a gas pipeline into extremely vulnerable Baltic Sea to avoid making connections to countries in the way and setting environment into great danger while doing so.

I'm pleased to see that my country, Estonia, started to act aggressively against this pipeline and decided not to allow a research to be done in our territorial waters. Now after those out sayings it seems that Finland and Sweden are also waking up and not being so positive about it.

We need to do a research on alternative routes of gas pipeline into Western-Europe through land, which is lot safer in the perspective of environment and we should remember and follow the old back to cold war days energy policy that one country does not buy more than 20% of energy from one partner, as it raises security concerns.

Belorussia - the last dictatorship in Europe.

It's extremely sad that we have in Europe in the beginning of 21^st century still a dictatorship. The type of leadership which fell in the end of 80s in most of Europe.

We are seeing slow steps towards democracy in many places around the world and after fell of the all mighty Soviet Union, we have seen how nations stood up and made their way into lot better life for most of the persons. We are still on the way on improving our life standard and doings in post-communism states, but we are clearly going to catch up old western countries sooner or later.

I clearly remember how after DEMYC seminar in Belgrade, Serbia in the beginning of the year one Belorussian participant got harassed by the authorities for attending it and communicating with people from free countries, where everyone can share their thoughts and views.

Unfortunately I see a coming trend in Russia also to move back into dictatorship and communist alike living methods. As basically nowadays we do not have much free press in there and opposition meetings are basically banned and people attending arrested for nothing.

Also the actions what they have done in Russia just before the December parliament elections are bit crazy as they should have there a free economy, capitalism and freedom of though, at least they tend to say so. But I would ask in connection to that.

• How come one can fix some prices in shops in free market conditions?
• How come one raises pensions hugely just days before elections?
• How come one creates organization to praise the leader?
• How come youth of the Putin's party looks very similar to Hitler Jugend?

Hopefully we can discuss and find some answers to those questions in Kiev on this weekend.

Stay tuned, most probably you will see some blog posts in DEMYC Interactive during the weekend to give a sneak-peak into what we are doing there.