Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
TURKISH MILITARY ADMITS LOSING PSYCHOLOGICAL WAR, TARGETS KURDISH MPs
General Yasar Buyukanit, the chief of the Turkish General Staff (TGS), yesterday (December 11) admitted that Turkey was losing the psychological war against Kurdish separatism. Buyukanit was speaking at a symposium in Ankara organized by the Strategic Research and Studies Center (SAREM), a think tank... MORE
IS RUSSIA’S “OPERATION SUCCESSOR” FINALLY OVER?
Yesterday’s announcement by United Russia and three other parties that First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev will be their candidate in the March 2008 presidential election, followed by President Vladimir Putin’s blessing of Medvedev’s candidacy, appears at first glance to mean that “Operation Successor” has... MORE
GODFATHER OF KAZMUNAYGAZ JOINS TOP ECHELONS OF POWER
On December 6 Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev appointed Nurlan Balgimbayev to be his advisor. Shortly before the announcement, a new wave of administrative reforms replaced several regional governors and top government officials, including the ministers of finance and energy and mineral resources. Balgimbayev is one... MORE
U.S. PROPOSAL TOLERATES RUSSIAN MILITARY PRESENCE IN MOLDOVA
According to a new U.S. proposal regarding Moldova, “Russia would resume withdrawal/disposal of munitions when possible.” Pending that, the OSCE would conduct periodic observation visits at the munitions stockpiles. Thus, the document fails to establish a Russian commitment to, or time frame for, the withdrawal... MORE
EDUCATION APPOINTMENT REINFORCES TURKISH SECULARIST FEARS, SIGNALS TENSIONS AHEAD
Turkish President Abdullah Gul’s choice of a conservative as the new head of the Higher Education Council (YOK), which oversees university education in Turkey, has reinforced Turkish secularist fears and raised concerns about the possibility of renewed tensions over the role of Islam in public... MORE
MOSCOW LAMBASTES WEST DURING ELECTION LULL
Russia has slipped into a distinctly anti-climactic mood since the December 2 parliamentary elections delivered exactly the result planned in the Kremlin. In hindsight the massive propaganda campaign appears to be overkill, leaving an aftertaste of Soviet manifestations of “unbreakable unity,” so even the triumphant... MORE
NETS: JOINT GAS TRANSMISSION NETWORK PROPOSED IN CENTRAL AND SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
The Hungarian energy company MOL is proposing the unification of gas transmission pipeline systems in Central and Southeastern Europe, within a new and independent regional gas transmission network. The existing systems are nationally owned and operated, mainly under state ownership. MOL is privately owned. The... MORE
WEST SILENT AS YEREVAN STEPS UP PRE-ELECTION CRACKDOWN ON OPPOSITION
With just over two months to go before a fateful presidential election, Armenia’s leadership is stepping up what increasingly looks like repression against supporters of its most formidable opponent, former president Levon Ter-Petrosian. The authorities in Yerevan have been busy in recent weeks harassing his... MORE
NIE REPORT EASES PRESSURE ON TURKEY OVER TIES WITH IRAN
The recent U.S. National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) report suggesting that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003 has eased the pressure on Turkey over its growing economic ties with Iran. Since the moderate Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power in November... MORE
SHVARTSMAN’S DESCRIPTION OF SILOVIKI BUSINESS PRACTICES – TRUTH OR FICTION?
The interview that Finansgroup head Oleg Shvartsman gave to Kommersant, which the newspaper published in its November 30 issue, has elicited a storm of reaction – almost eclipsing the December 2 parliamentary elections. Shvartsman claimed in the interview that his $3.2 billion fund management company... MORE