Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
PHASE-OUT DILEMMAS AT LITHUANIA’S NUCLEAR POWER PLANT
On December 31, Lithuania shut down the first of two Soviet-era nuclear reactors at the Ignalina nuclear power plant and began the decommissioning process. The European Union required the closure of Unit One by December 2004 and of Unit Two by December 2009, as part... MORE
WHO WILL REPLACE YANUKOVYCH?
Viktor Yushchenko, who was elected Ukraine's president on December 26, has promised to come up with a candidate for prime minister this week. The candidate will need to be approved by parliament. This will be the first test of Yushchenko's ability to negotiate with the... MORE
RESENTMENT STILL SMOLDERS IN MOSCOW AFTER UKRAINE ELECTIONS
Just as President-elect Viktor Yushchenko predicted, Supreme Rada Chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn chose Moscow as the destination of his first visit abroad after Ukraine's presidential election. Lytvyn, who had switched allegiance from the Kuchma-Yanukovych camp to the constitution of Ukraine and supremacy of law during the... MORE
RUSSIA: DEMOCRACY DISMANTLED
No serious observer can dispute the fact that Russia is no longer a "managed democracy"; it is a bureaucratic-authoritarian regime. On September 13, 2004, President Vladimir Putin announced that the leaders of Russia's regions would henceforth be appointed, not elected as they had been for... MORE
RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY EXPERTS DEBATE STRATEGY FOR 2005
As the year 2005 begins, Russia's foreign policy strategy appears to be at a fork in the road. Most experts agree that the country's principal strategic dilemma remains unresolved. On the one hand, Russia aspires to join the "Western world." On the other, it cherishes... MORE
A BLURRED VISION IN BRUSSELS
On January 5, Poland's leading newspaper, Gazeta Wyborcza, printed excerpts from the speech given by the European Parliament' President, Josep Borrell, to the previous day's closed-door session of the Forum for New Economics in Madrid. Borrell, a Spanish Socialist who is critical of the United... MORE
WHAT IS WRONG WITH ANDREI ILLARIONOV?
Russian President Vladimir Putin clearly wanted to have the last word about the year 2004. First he shifted his "traditional" lengthy press conference to December 23, and then he confidently insisted that the country is on the right course whatever question a bothersome journalist would... MORE
LACK OF REGIONAL COORDINATION FACILITATES REGULAR FLOODING IN CENTRAL ASIA
The government of Kazakhstan, true to its tradition of international solidarity, was quick to offer a helping hand to tsunami-affected areas of Southeast Asia. On January 3 a cargo plane took off from Karaganda airport to deliver 46 tons of foodstuffs and medicines to Sri... MORE
OPPOSITION LEADER RESIGNS IN ATTEMPT TO RE-ENERGIZE AZERI POLITICS
Etibar Mammadov, the long-time chairman of the Azerbaijan National Independence Party (ANIP) and one of the most influential opposition leaders in Azerbaijan, announced his resignation from his party position on December 24. His decision came as a surprise not only to other political parties, but... MORE
TAJIKISTAN AND UZBEKISTAN LOOK BEYOND U.S. SECURITY ASSISTANCE
Despite growing levels of post-9/11 U.S. security assistance aimed at strengthening the weak militaries and security structures in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, both countries show clear signs of diversifying their security interests, reflecting a resurgent Russia and burgeoning Chinese interests in Central Asia. Tajikistan has prioritized... MORE