Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
WILL SOUTH OSSETIA HAVE ANOTHER BLOODY SUMMER?
Recent weeks have brought alarming developments from Georgia's separatist South Ossetia region. Kidnappings, militant statements, Russian military assistance to the separatists, and fruitless peace negotiations -- the same factors that contributed to armed conflict in the region last summer -- are fully present. On June... MORE
ADMIRAL KUROYEDOV PLANS IMPROVEMENTS TO RUSSIAN NAVY
Admiral Vladimir Kuroyedov, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, has promised improvements to the Navy in response to the challenge of meeting emerging and future threats to the Russian state or its interests. These reforms, long overdue and vital if the collapse of the Navy is... MORE
MEDIA BIAS DECREASES IN UKRAINE, BUT THROUGH DUBIOUS MEANS
Six months into the Viktor Yushchenko presidency, the media and information situation in Ukraine remains mixed. The good news is that oligarch control over electronic media is on the decline. The bad news is that the tactics of the newly elected authorities are not always... MORE
VORONIN REQUESTS NATO IPAP, WESTERN SUPPORT TO RESOLVE TRANSNISTRIA
On June 7 in Brussels, Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin addressed the North Atlantic Council (NAC, the main decision-making body of NATO) in ambassadorial session, as part of NATO-Moldova consultations within the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program. It was the first-ever official visit by a Moldovan... MORE
OSSETIA AND INGUSHETIA PROTEST KREMLIN PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENTS
On June 7, Taymuraz Mamsurov, the speaker of North Ossetian parliament, was officially declared the new leader of the republic. The process, which in other regions of Russia lasts for days or weeks, was completed in just a few hours. According to gazeta.ru, at 9:00... MORE
RUSSIA SEEKS CLARITY IN RELATIONS WITH JAPAN
The Kremlin has urged Japan to show a "more concrete" interest in economic ties with Russia, while Moscow is yet to finalize its own Pacific oil pipeline plan. Meanwhile, prospects of a major economic breakthrough in bilateral relations have been hindered by the long-standing territorial... MORE
AZERBAIJANI OPPOSITION SCORES ITS FIRST VICTORY IN 19 MONTHS
On June 4, the Azerbaijani opposition achieved its greatest victory in the past 19 months. The ban on organizing and holding public rallies in the country was finally broken when Baku Mayor Hajibala Abutalibov agreed to authorize a request for street demonstration organized by a... MORE
IS BELARUS A DICTATORSHIP?
Several recent events have brought Belarus close to a dictatorship, a term used rather freely to describe the administration of President Alexander Lukashenka, but hitherto incorrectly. Over the past eleven years, despite the heavy hand of the authorities, there have remained important outlets for the... MORE
KREMLIN SHADOW LOOMS OVER KAZAKH-UKRAINIAN TALKS
Despite considerable public interest, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko's first visit to Kazakhstan was rather anti-climactic. Official media sources in Kazakhstan did not go beyond the set pattern for covering state visits, namely highlighting a growing trade volume (around $1 billion last year) and discussing economic... MORE
IS UKRAINE RESUMING DOUBLE-VECTOR DISCOURSE FOR OIL’S SAKE?
On his visit to Kazakhstan in search for oil supplies, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko held out the prospect of Ukraine's participation in the Russia-led project of a Single Economic Space (SES, which also includes Belarus and Kazakhstan). Without mentioning Ukraine's quest for increasingly closer relations... MORE