  We consider the manipulation of Bose-Einstein condensate vortices by optical
potentials generated by focused laser beams. It is shown that for appropriate
choices of the laser strength and width it is possible to successfully
transport vortices to various positions inside the trap confining the
condensate atoms. Furthermore, the full bifurcation structure of possible
stationary single-charge vortex solutions in a harmonic potential with this
type of impurity is elucidated. The case when a moving vortex is captured by a
stationary laser beam is also studied, as well as the possibility of dragging
the vortex by means of periodic optical lattices.
