Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
ROSNEFT EYES NEW FIELDS IN EASTERN SIBERIA AND BEYOND
Rosneft, Russia's state-owned oil titan, has been pursuing a very aggressive policy in recent months in order to boost its clout in Eastern Siberia. In the meantime, Rosneft's pro-active approach has been seen as a part of the Kremlin's broader strategy to rely on major... MORE
HAS MOSCOW TURNED ITS BACK ON TEHRAN?
The protracted, slow-moving intrigue around Iran's nuclear program accelerated sharply last week as the international seals on the research facility at Natanz were removed. The frustrated European "troika" -- France, Germany, and the UK -- interrupted their fruitless negotiations with Iran, and the United States... MORE
YUSHCHENKO SWEARS BY RUSSIAN GAS DEAL WHILE YEKHANUROV SPILLS THE BEANS
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko is risking his political credibility by blindly defending the Russian-Ukrainian gas deal despite severe criticism of it by Western and Ukrainian experts and a majority of the Ukrainian parliament. Rather than addressing the agreement on its merits, Yushchenko ignores Western critics... MORE
IVANOV RESTATES KREMLIN’S MONROE DOCTRINE
An increasingly assertive Moscow appears to be revising the organizational forms it has used to dominate the post-Soviet space. While a growing number of influential Russian policymakers and pundits speak in favor of relegating the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) to the dustbin of history,... MORE
ARMENIAN OLIGARCH MAKES BID FOR POWER WITH NEW POLITICAL PARTY
Armenia's arguably wealthiest government-connected businessman has caused a stir in the domestic political arena by setting up a new party with far-reaching political ambitions. Gagik Tsarukian appears to have enlisted the support of prominent public figures and even an opposition leader for his bid to... MORE
RESIDENTS ANGRY AS AZERBAIJAN HIKES GASOLINE PRICES
The new year has brought new economic surprises for the average Azerbaijani citizen. The Council on Tariffs decided on January 6 to double the price of diesel fuel (from 20 cents per liter to 40 cents), giving it the same price tag as regular gasoline.... MORE
PUTIN OFFERS TO SHORE UP A WEAKENED YUSHCHENKO
Russian President Vladimir Putin is shifting tactics toward Ukraine. Following the "gas attack" designed to produce regime change in Ukraine at the upcoming parliamentary elections, Putin is now apparently moving to reach an understanding with the severely weakened President Viktor Yushchenko. The January 4 signing... MORE
RUSSIAN GENERALS WARN OF NEW REBEL OFFENSIVE IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS
Less than three months after the rebel attack on the city of Nalchik, the capital of the republic of Kabardino-Balkaria in the North Caucasus, the Russian military command has again begun to talk about new rebel attacks. On January 8, Sergei Topchy, deputy commander of... MORE
SAAKASHVILI GOVERNMENT CRACKS DOWN ON PRISON MAFIA
A wave of strikes by inmates at prisons across Georgia is part of the criminal world's carefully crafted plan to resist government efforts to assert their authority in the penal system. The first strike began on December 24 in Kutaisi, Georgia's second largest city, and... MORE
QUESTIONS SURROUND CONTINUED U.S. PRESENCE IN AFGHANISTAN
Since the fall of the Taliban in late 2001, Afghans have been wary of the continued U.S. presence in Afghanistan. They remember bitterly the aftermath of the war against the Soviets in the 1980s, when the West -- led by the United States -- left... MORE