A special session of the OSCE's Permanent Council in Vienna on July 29 failed to act on Georgia's proposal to widen the role of the OSCE Mission in South Ossetia. Supported in principle, though in lukewarm tones, by the United States and the European Union,... MORE

President Putin's recent changes in the senior personnel in the Russian armed forces have aroused concerns about the future course of the military. Those appointed, at least on paper, hold out the promise of steady improvement in the military, rather than continued decline. Colonel-General Alexander... MORE

On July 26-27, Ukraine's state pipeline company UkrTransNafta announced the signing of agreements with Tyumen Oil-British Petroleum (TNK-BP, the Russian-British joint company) on the reverse use of the Odessa-Brody -- henceforth Brody-Odessa -- oil pipeline. The agreements envisage the transit of 9 million tons of... MORE

A Qatar appeals court on July 29 rejected an appeal by two Russian intelligence agents sentenced to life imprisonment for the February bombing that killed former Chechen separatist president Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev. The presiding judge, Abdullah al-Saadi, told the court that the appeal was rejected in... MORE

On July 24, the head of the OSCE Center in Ashgabat, Ambassador Paraschiva Badescu, had to vacate her post and leave the country because Turkmen authorities refused the OSCE's request for another six-month extension of her accreditation. Such request and extension is typically a routine... MORE

On July 24, the head of the OSCE Center in Ashgabat, Ambassador Paraschiva Badescu, had to vacate her post and leave the country because Turkmen authorities refused the OSCE's request for another six-month extension of her accreditation. Such request and extension is typically a routine... MORE

In what could be a further indication that the Kremlin plans to seize back the commanding heights of Russia's economy -- i.e., the energy sector -- the state-owned Rosneft oil company announced on July 27 that its board of directors had elected deputy presidential administration... MORE

On July 21, the MiG Russian Aircraft Corporation dispatched two new MiG-29 fighters to Sudan, partly fulfilling an original contract for 12 fighters signed in 2001. MiG Corporation's spokesmen say that, by the end of 2004, it will have produced another 36 aircraft for governments... MORE

On July 19 Russia's Security Council convened a special meeting in the Kremlin to discuss the growing geopolitical rivalry in the post-Soviet space and Moscow's position within the Commonwealth of Independent States. As Russia desperately seeks to preserve its leadership role in the "near abroad,"... MORE

Observers have expressed skepticism that the Russian government will accept a London-based consortium's proposal to pay off Yukos' multi-billion-dollar tax bill and buy out a majority stake in the embattled oil company. The proposal by the consortium, which is led by former Bank Menatep vice... MORE