Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles

CIS ATROPHY PROCESS CONTINUES

The 15th, “jubilee” Commonwealth of Independent States summit of heads of state was to have been held in Minsk on October 16-17. However, it transpired as late as October 10 that the summit is being postponed, probably for late November, by a joint decision of... MORE

YUSHCHENKO PICKS DONETSK MAN FOR SECURITY CHIEF

On October 10 President Viktor Yushchenko appointed one of Ukraine’s most influential businessmen, Vitaly Hayduk, as secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC). Yushchenko had reportedly been about to choose either opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko or former prime minister Yuriy Yekhanurov for this... MORE

KAZAKHSTAN’S SHOW OF FORCE MEANT TO COUNTER ISLAMIC EXTREMISM

Kazakhstan has conducted military exercises in its western region, partly to demonstrate more effective coordination of its security forces, but also to convey a powerful signal to Islamic extremists and confidently display its ability to protect its facilities in the Caspian Sea. These exercises, though... MORE

ARMENIA, EU TO LAUNCH “ACTION PLAN” ON CLOSER TIES

Next month the European Union and Armenia will sign a five-year action plan related to the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) program that enables EU neighbors to establish preferential relations with the 25-country bloc. The development will be hailed by the authorities in Yerevan as an... MORE

RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN “INTERNATIONAL” GAS CONSORTIUM BACK ON THE AGENDA

On October 10, President Viktor Yushchenko’s office issued two policy announcements regarding control over Ukraine’s gas transit pipeline system: regarding national ownership in the morning and regarding a Russian-German-Ukrainian consortium in the evening. Meeting in the morning with Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych to discuss government... MORE

MOSCOW EYES COORDINATION WITH CHINA OVER NORTH KOREAN TEST

As Russia backed measured UN sanctions against Pyongyang following its October 9 nuclear test, Moscow appears to be seeking concerted action with Beijing regarding North Korea’s mercurial behavior. Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized the North Korean test and argued that Pyongyang's nuclear program should be... MORE

AZERBAIJAN BECOMING POPULAR DRUG TRAFFICKING ROUTE

Last week the Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan broke up a transnational network funneling illegal drugs from Iran toward Europe via Azerbaijan. Two citizens of Azerbaijan were arrested in relation to this case, and authorities confiscated 19 kilograms of hashish from them. They had... MORE

RUSSIA UNFAZED BY NORTH KOREAN NUCLEAR TEST

Although North Korea’s nuclear test on October 9 transformed the Northeast Asian landscape, it apparently has not changed the postures of the members of the six-party talks all that much. Russia’s reaction to this test is very much a linear progression from its previous stance... MORE