Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
RUSSIAN ENERGY MAJORS EYE DIRECT OUTLET TO MEDITERRANEAN
Russia’s ambitious attempts to cast itself as the principal energy supplier to world markets explain the new deal on an oil pipeline linking the Black Sea with the Aegean. During his September 4 visit to Greece, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a seemingly attractive offer... MORE
RUSSIA’S LATEST NAVAL TRAGEDY
On the morning of September 7, the St. Daniil Moskovsky, a Russian Victor III-class submarine that was commissioned in 1990 and went to sea in 1991, caught fire in the Barents Sea. The fire was caused by a short circuit in the electrical control panel.... MORE
NAZARBAYEV’S TRIP TO WASHINGTON: WHAT ASTANA CAN HOPE FOR?
Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s upcoming official visit to the United States will be his sixth summit meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush. As the trip approaches, more questions arise concerning the future shape of Kazakh-U.S. relations, specifically whether it should become a genuine, “strategic”... MORE
WILL YUSHCHENKO’S PARTY SPLIT?
President Viktor Yushchenko’s camp in parliament, as well as the party whose honorary chairman he is -- People’s Union-Our Ukraine (NSNU) -- may split. Not all of Yushchenko’s supporters have put up with the idea of co-habitation with, let alone participation in, the government of... MORE
REBELS AND SECURITY OFFICIALS FIGHT TO CONTROL TRANSCAUCASUS HIGHWAY
“Four servicemen were killed and four injured when a convoy of vehicles hit a mine,” the Russian state agency RIA-Novosti reported on September 6. Such news would not be a surprise coming out of Chechnya, but this incident happened in North Ossetia, a North Caucasus... MORE
EU’S ENERGY POLICY: A QUEST FOR RELEVANCE
The relevance of any EU energy policy will hinge on clearly identifying the mounting risks, with an uninhibited analysis of Russia’s manifold challenges, and calling for the development of an energy security strategy, with diversification of supplies as its centerpiece. The twin goals must be... MORE
SEVEN RUSSIAN CHALLENGES TO THE WEST’S ENERGY SECURITY
Russia’s challenge to Western energy security has grown almost explosively in recent months along seven dimensions: 1. Seemingly unchecked growth of the European market share captured by Russia’s state-connected energy companies. Largely driven or assisted by the Kremlin, this process is fraught with manifold economic... MORE
ENERGY SECURITY AS A EURO-ATLANTIC CONCERN
The European Commission is expecting comments this month before finalizing its draft Energy Security Paper for publication. Russia’s manifold challenges to Western energy security are confronting head-on the European Union’s supply diversification and demonopolization goals. Thanks to the Kremlin’s political impetus, these processes pose systemic... MORE
IMF WARNS TBILISI TO CURB RISING INFLATION
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned the Georgian government to curb the country's creeping inflation. The admonition has provided evidence that the country's actual economic situation significantly differs from the government's rosy pronouncements. Since the beginning of 2006, the government has continuously touted impressive... MORE
KARIMOV FORGING PARTNERSHIP WITH JAPAN
Still tainted by the May 2005 Andijan massacre and its aftermath, Uzbek President Islam Karimov has discovered that Japan is willing to explore economic cooperation and to develop closer relations with the Tashkent regime. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visited Central Asia in late August... MORE