On June 16 U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon saw himself compelled to order the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) to cease operations immediately, after 16 years of existence (Secretary-General's office press release, June 16). That same day (late on July 15 New York time)... MORE

Turkish involvement in Pakistan and Afghanistan has mainly developed as a result of Ankara's own initiatives. Recently, however, the U.S. requested that Turkey enhance its security assistance to Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, asked the Turkish... MORE

On June 12 hundreds of protesters in the Elbrus district of Kabardino-Balkaria blocked the highway that connects this mountainous resort region with the republic's lowlands. The protestors were current and former tourist industry employees demanding shares in a tourist company, a just distribution of land... MORE

The failings of the Russian military modernization program are providing an additional source of discontent among the opponents of reform and within the government. On June 1, during a government session Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin publicly criticized Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov, the Chief of... MORE

Russia's national day had all the necessary flags in the streets and a reception in the Kremlin, but few Russians see the point in celebrating the "Declaration on State Sovereignty" approved by the Congress of People's Deputies on June 12, 1990. That act delivered a... MORE

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev clarified that Armenia signed without conditions, but it was Uzbekistan that registered multiple objections and reservations at the Collective Security Treaty Organization's (CSTO) summit in Moscow on June 14 (EDM, June 15). The seven heads of state were scheduled to approve... MORE

On June 12, the liberal left Taraf daily triggered a political crisis in Ankara. Taraf claimed to have uncovered a four-page unclassified document, detailing an alleged action plan for the military to combat the "reactionary activities" against secularism. It was allegedly prepared by a colonel... MORE

The ongoing battle over the construction of the Russian-German Nord Stream gas pipeline is reaching a critical stage. In June the German ministry of defense once again voiced its opposition to the proposed route of the pipeline, and presented their arguments to the German parliament's... MORE

The oldest opposition party in independent Belarus, the Popular Front, appears to be on the verge of yet another split within its ranks, one that according to its leader Lyavon Barcheuski, might result in its extinction. On June 20, the Popular Front will hold a... MORE

Belarus refused to attend the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Moscow on June 14. The summit made decisions to enlarge the size of collective rapid deployment forces, the scope of their missions, and the legal basis of their operations.President Alyaksandr Lukashenka cancelled the... MORE