Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
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
RUSSIAN REGULATORS BECOMING AWARE OF BAIKAL ENVIRONMENTAL WOES
This week Russian regulators suddenly moved to crack down on the factory poisoning Lake Baikal, the world’s largest reservoir of fresh surface water. On December 4 Russian Natural Resources Minister Yuri Trutnev ordered the ministry’s environmental watchdog, Rosprirodnadzor, to sue the Baikal Pulp and Paper... MORE
NAZARBAYEV HINTS AT LARGER STATE SHARE IN KASHAGAN
One of Vladimir Putin’s most notable accomplishments since he assumed the presidency of the Russian Federation on December 31, 1999, has been his relentless effort to downsize the Western presence in the Russian Federation energy sector. Now it seems that Kazakhstan might be pursuing similar... MORE