The month-long negotiations among Georgia's opposition parties about fielding common candidates in the forthcoming parliamentary by-elections on October 1 have produced an agreement. On August 5, leaders of the Conservative, Labor, Tavisupleba (Freedom), and the New Right parties signed a memorandum about holding preliminary primaries... MORE

Kazakhstan's border delimitation process has always been an issue shrouded in mystery, even for residents of the border areas. The authorities have previously accused journalists in South Kazakhstan of issuing inaccurate reports that damage relations with Uzbekistan. Therefore, journalists hungry for first-hand information were excited... MORE

Democratic Initiatives, a well-established, Kyiv-based sociological think tank, has just published a new study, Politchnyi portret (no. 32, 2005). Democratic Initiatives was one of four Ukrainian sociological organizations involved in organizing exit polls during the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election. Politychnyi portret reveals that 18.4% of... MORE

Kazakhstan's border delimitation process has always been an issue shrouded in mystery, even for residents of the border areas. The authorities have previously accused journalists in South Kazakhstan of issuing inaccurate reports that damage relations with Uzbekistan. Therefore, journalists hungry for first-hand information were excited... MORE

Among the first tasks Kyrgyz president-elect Kurmanbek Bakiyev faced after winning the July 10 election was to assemble his cabinet. Already the process has revealed cracks in the new ruling regime. According to Bakiyev's prior agreement with Acting Prime Minister Felix Kulov, the president would... MORE

Tajikistan's border guard service, with enhanced and independent responsibilities for Tajik border security since the withdrawal of Russian border units, continues to be hampered by internal corruption and poor discipline. On August 4 senior officers serving in the State Border Protection Committee (SBPC) were arrested... MORE

Ukraine's presidency and government are moving on three fronts to alleviate the country's overdependence on Russian oil supplies and Russian-owned refining capacities. Kyiv is set participate in launching the Odessa-Brody oil transport project; build Ukrainian-controlled, modern refining capacities for Caspian (non-Russian) oil; and, for the... MORE

Last week saw a significant shift of emphasis in the unseasonably hot political commentary in Moscow: It was not whether but how Vladimir Putin will secure a third presidential term for himself (Nezavisimaya gazeta, Grani.ru, August 3). The trigger for this re-targeting of professional speculations... MORE