Russian President Vladimir Putin engages in political and diplomatic battles over Ukraine as if it is his personal Stalingrad. Many liberal or just moderately independent commentators in Moscow argue that there was no need for him to take such a one-sided position and that the... MORE

On December 1, Latvian political parties ended a two-month deadlock by concluding a broad-based coalition agreement and programmatic declaration for the new government. The outgoing government, which had resigned in October and stayed on as caretaker, was a minority government of heterogeneous composition. It depended... MORE

Two powerful blasts rocked Almaty on Sunday, November 28, around 7 pm. The explosions caused serious damage to an agricultural library and triggered a flood of rumors and speculation. While pro-government media suggested that it was merely the work of hooligans, investigators as well as... MORE

Russia's Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliev has appealed for the fight against terrorism in Russia to transcend military and security structures and include psychological, ideological, and economic means. Speaking in Moscow on November 26, Nurgaliev explained that the struggle against terrorism within the Russian Federation must... MORE

Sergei Bagapsh, the opposition's presidential candidate in the disputed presidential elections in Georgia's breakaway region, Abkhazia, is inching toward securing the presidency. On November 26, the Abkhazian parliament officially decreed the October 3 presidential elections valid, "despite certain electoral violations" and declared Bagapsh president-elect. The... MORE

On November 26, in Italy's Bay of Taranto, the Russian Black Sea Fleet's destroyer Smetlivyi and frigate Pytlivyi conducted a one-day joint exercise with two units from NATO's Standing Naval Force Mediterranean (STANAVFORMED): the U.S. Navy's destroyer Mahan and the Greek frigate Bouboulina. The event,... MORE

As the political standoff continues in Ukraine, the only conclusion that can now possibly be made is that the pro-presidential camp never sought to hold free and fair elections in the first place. Both rounds one (October 31) and two (November 21) of the presidential... MORE

The information blockade around opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko has broken. Channel 5, which is controlled by Yushchenko's aide Petro Poroshenko, is no longer the only television channel to give air time to the opposition and offer more or less unbiased coverage of Ukrainian politics. Several... MORE

As the democratic opposition continues to swell the streets of Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, the Moscow Kremlin is likely having second thoughts about its policies toward Russia's western neighbor. The Putin administration's Ukraine strategy has proved to be misconceived: a brazen attempt to steal... MORE

The Moldovan government does not recognize the officially announced results for Ukraine's presidential election. In a November 26 declaration, Moldova's Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted, "The November 21 balloting failed to meet the requirements and criteria for recognition of the returns by Ukraine's citizens and... MORE