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Geopolitical Calendar: Week of May 26, 2014


Analysis


EUROPE
May 26-27: EU ministers for industry, research and the internal market will meet in Brussels.
May 27: European Council President Herman Van Rompuy will host an informal meeting of EU leaders in Brussels during which they will discuss possible candidates for European Commission president.
May 28: The EU Permanent Representatives Committees, Coreper I and Coreper II will meet in Brussels.
May 28: The International Monetary Fund's executive board will meet to discuss and likely approve the disbursement of its next bailout tranche to Greece.
May 29-30: Slovenian President Borut Pahor will visit Serbia with a business delegation at the invitation of Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic. The president will also visit areas affected by recent floods.
May 31: Outgoing Slovenian Prime Minister Alenka Bratusek will establish a new political party, which will hold its first congress in Ljubljana.

FORMER SOVIET UNION
May 26: EU Energy Commissioner Gunther Oettinger will host natural gas talks between Russia, Ukraine and the European Commission. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Prodan will attend.
May 26: The sixth meeting of the Azerbaijan-Switzerland Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation will take place in Bern.
May 26: Baku will host the first tripartite meeting of Azerbaijani, Turkmen and Turkish foreign ministers, which will focus on cooperation, regional issues and the status of the Caspian Sea.
May 27: The NATO-Russia Council will meet to discuss the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.
May 27: EU leaders will hold an informal meeting on the situation in Ukraine.
May 29: Discussions will conclude on Kyrgyzstan's potential Customs Union accession.
June 1: Russian soldiers engaged in exercises in the Rostov, Belgorod and Bryansk regions will have all returned to their permanent posts.

ASIA-PACIFIC
May 26-29: Officials from Japan and North Korea will meet in Stockholm to discuss a number of issues, including Pyongyang's abduction of Japanese citizens.
May 31-June 1: Defense chiefs from South Korea, the United States and Japan will meet to discuss North Korea's nuclear missile program.
Unspecified date: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will visit Italy either before or after the June 4-5 G-7 summit in Brussels.
Unspecified date: Former Chinese State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan could visit Japan in early June to attend a meeting of the Japan-China Friendship Committee.
Unspecified date: Japan will host Duma Chairman Sergey Naryshkin, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Unspecified date: South Korea and China will hold a fresh round of negotiations on establishing a bilateral free trade agreement the week of May 26.
Unspecified date: The Shanghai Free Trade Zone will unveil regulations for a scheme that will allow individuals to open overseas investment accounts.

SOUTH ASIA
May 26: India will hold the swearing-in ceremony for newly elected Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. Attendees will include Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, Nepali Prime Minister Sushil Koirala, Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom, Bangladeshi Parliament Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury and Mauritius Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam. Modi has also invited Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
May 26: The administrations of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and newly formed Telangana state will begin functioning independently ahead of official bifurcation June 2.
May 28-30: Pakistan will host the 12th International Exhibition for the Energy Industry. Delegates from China, Germany, Iran, India, Italy, Japan, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, Ukraine, Malaysia, Egypt, Australia, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Thailand and Turkey will attend.
May 31: This is the supreme court-specified deadline for New Delhi power distribution companies BSES Rajdhani and BSES Yamuna to pay $118 million in dues to power supplier NTPC, after which NTPC could cut off power supplies to the city.
June 1: Weather forecasters from the India Meteorological Department expect India's monsoon rainfall to begin on this date, although private forecasting company Skymet Weather Services expects landfall May 28.

MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA
May 26: Pope Francis will complete his trip to the Middle East that began May 24.
May 25: Lebanese President Michel Suleiman's term will end.
May 26-27: Egypt will hold presidential elections.
May 26-29: Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif will visit Algeria to attend the Non-Aligned Movement foreign ministers' summit.
May 27: Lebanon will hold a legislative session to discuss and approve a controversial salary scale for public servants.
May 29: The Palestinian Territories may form a unity government on this date.

AMERICAS
May 26: Argentinian oil workers from the Neuquen, Rio Negro and La Pampa provinces could stage a strike.
May 28: The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as FARC, and the National Liberation Army will end a temporary unilateral cease-fire following national elections.
May 28: The Argentine government will begin talks with the Paris Club to renegotiate its debt.
May 29: The Venezuelan government will sign an agreement with Spanish energy company Repsol and Italian energy company Eni for the development of the natural gas field Perla 3X.
May 29: Brazilian confederation of public service workers, Condsef, may strike.
June 1: The Dominican Republic will initiate its National Plan to Regularize Foreigners.
Undefined date: Mercosur will present its proposal for a basic free trade agreement to the European Union.

AFRICA
May 30: The Angolan government will launch a tender for the exploration of 10 new onshore oil blocks in the Congo and Kwanza basins.
May 30: The board of directors of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway will convene to discuss measures for financial efficiency.
Unspecified date: A reinforcement of U.S. Marine guards will arrive at the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi.
Unspecified date: Former South Sudanese Vice President Riek Machar will arrive in Khartoum for a two-day visit to discuss a resolution to the ongoing conflict in South Sudan.
Unspecified date: The Nigerian Senate will vote on the extension of a state of emergency in the northeast.
Unspecified date: The Kenyan Central Bank will issue bond sales of various maturities totaling 9 billion shillings ($100 million).


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