Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
TURKISH GENERAL PILLORIED BY THE FUNDAMENTALIST PRESS
Since the founding of the Republic of Turkey 85 years ago, the Turkish Armed Forces (Turk Silahli Kuvvetleri--TSK) has seen itself as the guardian of the nation’s secular Kemalist traditions. The unresolved tension between the country’s Islamic heritage and its secular traditions is rising due... MORE
NEW TWISTS IN THE RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN DISPUTE
The continuing Ukrainian-Russian war of words took on a new twist on June 13, when the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Ukraine of acting jointly with unnamed foreign companies to develop oil and gas fields illegally off the Crimean coast of the Black Sea shelf, claiming... MORE
RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN RELATIONS REVEAL DEEPER PROBLEMS
President Viktor Yushchenko’s first meeting with newly elected Russian President Dmitry Medvedev failed to resolve the outstanding issues between Ukraine and Russia. Despite Yushchenko’s optimism that all of these issues would be resolved, “the negotiations taking everything into account became very heated.” These issues cannot... MORE
KAZAKHSTAN’S ARMED FORCES LOOK FOR WESTERN “APPROVAL”
Kazakhstan’s military and security relationship with Russia, strong and rooted in common interests and approaches expressed through bilateral and multilateral defense cooperation, shows signs of deepening in new ways that reveal some of the most pressing priorities of Kazakhstan’s defense policies. In Eastern Kazakhstan from... MORE
THE BLACK SEA OIL FIELDS MAY MAKE TURKEY ENERGY INDEPENDENT
In recent years Turkey has geared up its efforts to diversify its energy sources. The State Planning Agency estimated that there is a need for an $80 billion investment in the next 15 years to meet the country’s energy needs (Dogu Karadeniz Bolgesi Bolgesel Gelisme... MORE
MOSCOW WANTS TO STRENGTHEN CIS AND OTHER POST-SOVIET GROUPS
Russia pushed for stronger ties among members of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), while promoting integration with its closer allies, members of the Eurasian Economic Commonwealth (EEC) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). Moscow's efforts have, however, been produced limited results so far.... MORE
RUSSIA INSISTS ON TREATING SEVASTOPOL AS AN OPEN QUESTION
President Dmitri Medvedev has tried to make a positive impression on every foreign partner he has encountered in his first month in office, building an image of an open-minded, polite and impeccably organized statesman, if perhaps not yet as a leader. He has made few... MORE
TATARSTAN LEADER CRITICIZES THE “VERTICAL OF POWER” AND “GREAT RUSSIAN CHAUVINISM”
In the most serious verbal challenge to the “vertical of power” that Vladimir Putin created after becoming head of the Russian state in 2000, and what may be a sign that Putin’s influence is on the decline since stepping down as president and becoming prime... MORE
SYRIA PROPOSES NUCLEAR COOPERATION WITH TURKEY
On June 13, during a visit to Istanbul for the Third Turkish-Arab Economic Forum, Syrian Oil Minister Sufiyan al-AW announced that Syria and Turkey were preparing to create a joint oil company to conduct oil prospecting activities in Syria, Turkey and third countries. Al-AW said... MORE
MEDVEDEV CONTINUES AND ESCALATES PUTIN’S HARD LINE ON GEORGIA
The Kremlin not only uses every available opportunity but also creates opportunities to show disdain for the weakness of Western policies on Georgia. Following the European Union-United States June 10 summit declaration, supporting Georgia’s territorial integrity in fine-print words only, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev promptly... MORE