Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
RUSSIA’S IRKUTSK REGION SEEKS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Despite its abundant natural resources, the Irkutsk region of Siberia has struggled to capitalize on its significant economic potential, mainly because it has been hampered by inadequate investment, Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov told a cabinet meeting on May 10. He also pointed out that average... MORE
YUSHCHENKO REPLACES KEY SECURITY AIDE
On Saturday, May 12, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko replaced Vitaly Hayduk with Ivan Plyushch in the post of secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC). Hayduk -- co-owner of the steel company Industrial Union of Donbas along with Serhy Taruta -- is a... MORE
DESPITE CEASE-FIRE ANNIVERSARY, SITUATION REMAINS TENSE IN KARABAKH
Last week, Armenia and Azerbaijan marked the 13th anniversary of the cease-fire signed between the two governments in the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, in 1994. But not only does the situation between the two countries remain tense, the prospects for peace keep getting smaller and smaller,... MORE
KRAKOW PRO-WESTERN ENERGY SUMMIT OUTMANEUVERED BY PUTIN IN CENTRAL ASIA
Originally suggested more than a year ago (https://www.jamestown.org/events_details.php?event_id=12), a summit of energy producer, transit, and consumer countries was held, albeit in a truncated format, on May 11 in Krakow, Poland. Presidents Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia, Viktor Yushchenko of Ukraine, Lech Kaczynski... MORE
PUTIN’S DOUBLE TRIUMPH NOT YET IN THE BAG
While Russian President Vladimir Putin has recently had serious disagreements with the United States and the European Union and bitter quarrels with Belarus and Ukraine, he has always been at his diplomatic best in Central Asia. Putin’s ongoing six-day visit to the region appears to... MORE
KAZAKHSTAN USES ENERGY DEALS WITH RUSSIA IN “CONSTRUCTIVE DIALOGUE” WITH EUROPE
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Astana on May 10 was widely regarded as the Kremlin’s attempt to regain its political and economic foothold in Central Asia, as Kazakhstan has increasingly tilted westward. Only one month ago Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev gave a cordial welcome... MORE
ESTONIA’S PRESIDENT UNDERSCORES SHARED GOALS IN VISIT TO GEORGIA
At the height of Russian bullying of Estonia, the country’s President Toomas Ilves flew to Georgia to tell that country -- which also borders on a hostile Russia -- that “Georgia is not alone.” Ilves’ decision to proceed with the previously scheduled, three-day official visit... MORE
TASHKENT EXPLORES OPTIONS TO EXPLOIT ENERGY RESOURCES
China’s relentless pursuit of energy options has now extended to Central Asia. On May 7 the leader of China’s top state planning body Ma Kai signed an energy-export agreement with Uzbek Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Azimov in Tashkent. The pact is significant in that, if... MORE
UKRAINE’S COMMUNISTS AND SOCIALISTS LEFT BEHIND BY PARLIAMENTARY ELECTION DEAL
Ukraine’s constitutional crisis seemed resolved on May 4, when Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych agreed to early parliamentary elections. But the date of the vote cannot be finalized until a compromise package of legislative and constitutional changes is adopted (see EDM, May 4, 9). President Viktor... MORE
CASPIAN GAS PLENTIFUL NOW FOR NABUCCO PIPELINE PROJECT
Hungary’s government remains the weak link in the planned Nabucco pipeline for Caspian gas to Europe via Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and Austria -- a project led by Austria’s OMV company. The European Union has assigned high-priority status to this project, but the Hungarian government... MORE