Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
SARKOZY ARMISTICE PLAN FAVORS RUSSIA, UNDERCUTS GEORGIA
On August 12 in Moscow, following Georgia’s unilateral ceasefire, French President Nicolas Sarkozy agreed with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on the conditions for Russia to cease hostilities against Georgia. That evening, Medvedev announced that Russia was temporarily ceasing hostilities against Georgia. That same evening Sarkozy... MORE
SARKOZY-MEDVEDEV PLAN FLAWED IN SUBSTANCE AND PROCESS
French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s initiative for a Russian cease-fire in Georgia (see accompanying article) is undoubtedly a helpful short-term measure, dictated by military necessity. It is also a welcome sign of more active European involvement in the South Caucasus after a long period of neglect.... MORE
TURKEY AND THE PROBLEMS WITH THE BTC
With Western eyes fixed on the clash between Russia and Georgia over the disputed enclaves of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the conflict is affecting neighboring countries’ oil shipments, particularly Azerbaijan and transit nation Turkey. There was a terrorist attack on August 5, two days before... MORE
UKRAINIAN GOVERNMENT EXPRESSES STRONG SUPPORT FOR GEORGIA
Ukraine’s president and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which comes under his jurisdiction, have reacted sharply to the Georgian-Russian conflict. President Viktor Yushchenko has close personal relations with President Mikhail Saakashvili with whom he is direct contact on a daily basis (www.president.gov.ua, August 9). The... MORE
HIZB UT-TAHRIR AND U.S. ALLIES IN CENTRAL ASIA
As Tashkent and Washington move to repair relations that were downgraded after divergent interpretations of the tragic events in Andijan on May 12, 2005, the U.S. is seeking to reengage Uzbekistan’s support for continuing cooperation of military operations in Afghanistan, for which Tashkent assented within... MORE
MOUNTING PKK DEATH TOLL INCREASES PRESSURE ON THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT
On August 11 nine Turkish soldiers were killed when the truck in which they were traveling was struck by a mine laid by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Kemah county in the province of Erzincan in southeast Turkey. It was the largest death toll... MORE
THE GEORGIAN-RUSSIAN CONFLICT THROUGH THE EYES OF BAKU
The escalating conflict in Georgia--with its unexpected military developments and great humanitarian losses--seems to have caught Azerbaijani officials and the public off guard. Azerbaijanis are not new to the world of Russian political games in the Caucasus. Baku itself suffered greatly from Russian intervention in... MORE
RUSSIAN “TANDEMOCRACY” STUMBLES INTO A WAR
Moscow was disconcertingly taken by surprise with the sharp escalation of hostilities in South Ossetia last Friday. The most apparent part of the problem was the lack of leadership, as President Dmitry Medvedev departed to a Volga resort and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin went to... MORE
SOME ANALYSTS SAY RUSSIA’S SILOVIKI BENEFIT FROM A WAR WITH GEORGIA
Not surprisingly, criticism in the Russian media of Russia’s military actions in South Ossetia and the rest of Georgia, to the degree that there has been any criticism at all, has been muted. Clearly, this is partly due to the fact that the lion’s share... MORE
UKRAINE AND THE CONFLICT IN SOUTH OSSETIA
In the morning of August 10, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed its Russian counterpart that in order to prevent Ukraine from being drawn into an armed conflict, Ukraine might take measures to prevent the Russian Black Sea Fleet (RBSF) vessels from returning to... MORE