Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles

KREMLIN PLAN TO MERGE ADYGEYA MEETS UNEXPECTED OBSTACLE

On April 4, the second session of the newly elected parliament of Adygeya, a region in the western section of the North Caucasus, ended abruptly when President Khasret Sovmen announced his resignation. The Adygei leader had come to parliament to observe the process to select... MORE

BLESSING ARMENIA’S DEBT SERVITUDE

On March 31 in Moscow, the Foundation for the Orthodox Peoples' Unity bestowed its annual award on Armenian President Robert Kocharian and Russia's Gazprom company for their support to Russian spiritual and religious values (Noyan Tapan, March 31). By fortuitous coincidence, Gazprom doubled the price... MORE

NAZARBAYEV’S GROWING CONFIDENCE ON VIEW IN VISIT TO MOSCOW

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev received a warm welcome during his April 3 visit to Moscow. Friendly relations were emphasized when Nazarbayev dedicated a new monument to the 19th-century Kazakh poet Abai Kunanbayev, a devoted Russophile. Speaking at the ceremony, Russian President Vladimir Putin noted that... MORE

MAVERICK BANKER WINS MAYORAL ELECTION IN KYIV

The mayoral election in Kyiv, which was held simultaneously with the national parliamentary elections on March 26, produced a sensation. Leonid Chernovetsky, a maverick nouveau riche whose bid for city hall was hardly taken seriously in the beginning, came out ahead. While the two favorites... MORE

WILL ABKHAZIA COME UNDER UN GOVERNANCE?

During a March 29 news conference at UN headquarters in New York, Revaz Adamia, Georgia's permanent representative to the United Nations, stated that Georgia would not oppose temporary UN governance for Abkhazia. His comment likely is a trial balloon to test the reaction of the... MORE

AGREEMENTS SIGNED ON RUSSIAN MILITARY WITHDRAWAL FROM GEORGIA

On Friday, March 31, Georgia's First Deputy Defense Minister, Mamuka Kudava, and Russia's Ground Forces Commander-in-Chief, Colonel-General Alexei Maslov, signed a set of agreements on the withdrawal of Russian forces from the Batumi and Akhalkalaki bases and other Russian military installations in Georgia. The agreements... MORE

U.S. ANNOUNCES MAJOR NEW AID PACKAGE FOR ARMENIA

The United States has officially committed itself to providing $235.65 million in additional economic assistance to Armenia, in a further indication of its deepening ties with the South Caucasus country. The sum, substantial by Armenian standards, is to be provided over the next five years... MORE

TAJIK MILITARY WEARY OF NATO

Tajikistan's military leadership has expressed public concern over the country's recent trend toward closer involvement with the NATO Alliance as a mechanism through which Dushanbe will gain enhanced military and security capabilities. The apparent turn in the direction of Tajikistan's stated aims in this sphere... MORE

RUSSIAN-KAZAKH “STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP” LACKS EXCLUSIVITY

Russia has long considered Kazakhstan to be its main partner in Central Asia, but the Kazakh leadership seems to be seeking ways to hedge its bets by building an alternative partnership with China. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev's official visit to Russia April 3-5 is billed... MORE