Latest Articles about The Caucasus
Prime Minister Ivanishvili’s Foreign Policy Outline Encounters Strong Resistance from the Opposition
Widely considered the closest ally of Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, former Georgian Ambassador to the United States and current Ambassador to the United Kingdom Tedo Japaridze has put forward a draft agreement aimed at bringing together the two largest parliamentary factions—Ivanishvili’s Georgian Dream (GD) and... MORE
Extrajudicial Arrests and Killings on the Rise in Ingushetia
Reports of killings arrive from Ingushetia practically every week. During a Federal Security Service (FSB) operation on February 12, the officers killed a local resident. Security officials identified the slain man as Magomed Gaitukiev, a 40-year-old who had been tried in court for aiding the... MORE
Kremlin Moves Closer to Abandoning North Caucasus Tourism Development Project
On February 8, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev held a government commission meeting in the city of Cherkessk, Karachaevo-Cherkessia on the socio-economic development of the North Caucasus. The commission called for investing additional funds—nearly $3 billion—through 2020 into the region’s agricultural development. Chechen leader Ramzan... MORE
Ivanishvili’s Government Creates a Scapegoat, While Finding It Hard to Deliver on Its Promises
On February 15, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili’s United National Movement (UNM) party, as part of a power-sharing agreement, confirmed its proposal to the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) coalition that a large part of the new constitutional provisions should go into effect now, instead of in... MORE
Putin Cuts Conscript Soldiers’ Combat Training Time to Three Months
On February 12, a Russian presidential decree came into force that permits sending conscript soldiers to combat zones after a mere three months of training plus one month of regular service. The decree was not published on the Russian president’s official website, but instead was... MORE
With Eye to Sochi, Interior Ministry Foresees Reductions in the North Caucasus
In January, government forces killed 26 militants in the North Caucasus Federal District. Eight of those killed were referred to as leaders of the illegal armed groups. In the same period, 101 police operations were carried out in the district. Russia’s law enforcement agencies noted... MORE
New Georgian Ruling Regime Attempts to Shed Allies and Consolidate Power
On February 5, Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili made a number of statements addressed to Defense Minister Irakli Alasania, some of which sounded like accusations and warnings against the leader of the Our Georgia-Free Democrats (OGFD) party and one of the leaders of the ruling... MORE
Authorities See Salafi Groups Popping Up Everywhere Inside Russia
The Russian government has been forced to admit it is worried not only about Islam’s proliferation in the North Caucasus, but also about the proliferation of ideas of the North Caucasian militants spreading to other regions of Russia. Russian authorities are trying to prevent the... MORE
Failure to Heed Circassian Interests Undermines Russia’s Claims to Respect Ethnic Equality
On February 1, the head of the Russian parliament’s Committee for Nationalities, Gadzhimet Safaraliev, stated that the State Duma was preparing amendments to the country’s citizenship law that would allow former subjects of the Soviet Union and Russian Empire to migrate to the Russian Federation... MORE
Old New Faces: What Does Secretary of State John Kerry Mean for Azerbaijan?
The nomination and approval of John Kerry as the next head of the US Department of State did not come as a particular shock for observers inside Azerbaijan. The predictions and rumors prepared both the Azerbaijani establishment and the public for such a scenario. Still,... MORE