Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
IRAN-ARMENIA GAS PIPELINE: FAR MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE
On March 19 Presidents Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran and Robert Kocharian of Armenia inaugurated the operations of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline (Armenpress, IRNA, March 19, 20). Although the project’s scope is modest in terms of volume and market potential, its commissioning reflects two incipient trends... MORE
WHEN STABILITY IS UNCOMFORTABLE: AIR ATTACK ON THE UPPER KODORI VALLEY
Increasing direct evidence as well as strong circumstantial evidence suggests that the air attack on Georgia’s upper Kodori Valley during the night of March 11-12 was carried out by Russian helicopters. An investigative report is due for release in the next few days under a... MORE
MOSCOW WEIGHS ESCALATION OPTIONS IN ABKHAZIA PENDING INTERNATIONAL ACTIONS
Georgia’s response to the Russian helicopters’ attack on the upper Kodori Valley reflects a balance of four imperatives: prevent a possible recurrence or escalation of such attacks; avoid being drawn into armed conflict with Russia or its proxies; ensure unambiguous international support for Georgia; and... MORE
RAKHMONOV LAYS FOUNDATION FOR SECURITY COOPERATION WITH BAKU
On March 14 Tajikistan’s parliament finally passed legislation updating the country’s “Law on Combating Terrorism.” According to Rano Qayumova, a member of the Assembly of Representatives, the legal reform was designed to comply with recent changes to the structure of central state bodies tasked with... MORE
RUSSIA’S MILITARY PR PART OF KREMLIN INTRIGUES
After one month as Russia’s second first deputy prime minister, Sergei Ivanov is enjoying ample, uniformly positive media attention that will secure him higher numbers in opinion polls and expert ratings. He receives exactly the same amount of TV coverage as Dmitry Medvedev, the other... MORE
FRADKOV SUGGESTS ADDING PARALLEL GAS LINE FROM SIBERIA TO PACIFIC
On March 13, Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov voiced support for the idea to build a gas pipeline alongside the Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean (ESPO) oil pipeline. "I regard it positively," Fradkov told reporters at a meeting in the Sakha-Yakutiya Republic. He suggested plan has provisions for... MORE
ARMENIAN DIASPORA GROUPS FACE NEW AZERI CHALLENGE
On March 9, the first meeting of a new “Forum of Azerbaijani-Turkish Diaspora Organizations” convened in Baku, Azerbaijan. But as one participant described the event, “Lots of talk, but I wonder if all of this will turn into a real action. Perhaps the real goal... MORE
AGREEMENT SIGNED ON TRANS-BALKAN OIL PIPELINE, RIVAL TO TRANS-CASPIAN PROJECT
Yesterday, March 15, Russia, Bulgaria, and Greece signed an intergovernmental agreement to build the Trans-Balkan Oil Pipeline, Burgas-Alexandropolis. Russian President Vladimir Putin, in full command of the signing ceremonies, took it upon himself to define the project’s significance and the interests of other participants in... MORE
MOSCOW AND ROME INTENSIFY ECONOMIC RELATIONS
On March 13 Russian President Vladimir Putin and Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi began two days of talks in the Chigi Palace in the Italian Adriatic port of Bari. According to both sides, the two leaders concentrated on economic agreements while largely sidestepping more troublesome... MORE
RUSSIA RETURNING TO AFGHANISTAN WITH NOT-SO-SOFT POWER
Russian power is returning to Afghanistan in military and security terms, albeit without a military presence on the ground, at least for now. Moscow is using the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) as a thin cover. On March 9 through 13, a CSTO Working... MORE