Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
KYIV DIVIDED ON HOW FAR TO GO WITH RE-PRIVATIZATION
Foreign investors are showing more interest in Ukraine since the Orange Revolution. Nevertheless, they remain cautious because of uncertainties surrounding the threat of re-privatization. Until this issue is resolved, something President Viktor Yushchenko supports but Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko opposes, Ukraine's positive international image will... MORE
BUSH VISIT UNDERSCORES ALLIED COMMITMENT TO BALTIC STATES
Visiting Latvia and meeting there with the three Baltic presidents on May 7 while en route to Moscow, U.S. President George W. Bush declared on Latvian television in a pre-recorded interview: "We will stand with Latvia if a large country tries to intimidate the people…... MORE
UKRAINIAN VICTORY DAY SEES NO RECONCILIATION WITH INSURGENT ARMY VETERANS
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has failed to reconcile Red Army veterans with former fighters of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) on the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. The Yushchenko government initially wanted all the veterans to march along Kyiv's... MORE
UZBEKISTAN DROPS GUUAM FROM ITS ECLECTIC FOREIGN POLICY MENU
On May 5, officials in Tashkent announced that Uzbekistan would shortly withdraw from GUUAM, the augmented Georgia-Ukraine-Azerbaijan-Moldova (GUAM) alliance formed in 1997. Uzbekistan's foreign policy has always been a mixture of nationalism and pragmatism, and the latter ultimately caused Uzbekistan to opt out of GUUAM.... MORE
TAJIKISTAN FOSTERS SECURITY LINKS WITH IRAN
Tajikistan has recently implemented measures aimed at fostering its military and security cooperation with Iran, as it seeks to diversify its foreign sources for security assistance. On April 20 Tajik Defense Minister Sherali Khayrulloyev met his Iranian counterpart, Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani, in Tehran and... MORE
MOSCOW THWARTS JOINT PRESIDENTIAL DECLARATION ON TROOP WITHDRAWAL FROM GEORGIA
On May 6, the Russian government reneged on a recent, informal understanding between Ministers of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov and Salome Zourabichvili regarding a timetable for the closure of Russian bases and withdrawal of troops from Georgia. That informal understanding had envisaged starting the withdrawal... MORE
BELARUS TRIGGERS DISPUTE WITH UKRAINE
During the annual April 26 commemoration of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, Belarusian authorities detained several foreign nationals, including citizens of Russia and Ukraine. The arrests that occurred at one of the commemorations in Minsk have caused serious tensions with Kyiv, after the Belarusian authorities initially... MORE
BIG FISH LARGELY UNAFFECTED AS YEREVAN CRACKS DOWN ON TAX EVASION
The Armenian authorities have released new data on Armenia's leading corporate taxpayers. The previously unreleased data reveal the first results of the government's new crackdown on tax evasion. The figures suggest that, while the administration of President Robert Kocharian is on course to achieve a... MORE
IDLE PETRO-RUBLES ARE A RECIPE FOR STAGFLATION
Russia's economy is growing at a pace that invites envy from most European states. The ruble holds steady against the dollar, and Russia's trade balance for the first quarter of this year shows a record $25.9 billion. Its Central Bank, opting for a euro-shift in... MORE
MOSCOW NOT COMING TO TERMS WITH SOVIET OCCUPATION OF BALTIC STATES
Alone among the three Baltic heads of state, Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga will attend the Moscow festivities for the 60th anniversary of Victory Day. Her stated goal in accepting the invitation is to refute Russia's official version of history about the Baltic states having freely... MORE