Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
Is the Georgian Opposition Capable of ‘Dismantling the System?’
A so-called “Nationwide Protest Action” will be held in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, on June 10. This decision was made by the Council of Opposition Parties after Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili refused to resign (Kommersant, June 5). The opposition accuses the government of... MORE
Moscow Aims to Relocate Caspian Flotilla From Astrakhan to Kaspiysk in Dagestan
In early April, the minister of defense of Russia, Sergei Shoigu, announced the relocation of the Caspian Flotilla from Astrakhan (Astrakhan oblast, on the northwest coast of the Caspian Sea) to Kaspiysk, a Dagestani city just south of the republican capital of Makhachkala. The first... MORE
Aggravated Situation Around Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan Exclave
An Azerbaijani soldier stationed in the country’s large western exclave of Nakhchivan was killed, on May 20, during a combat mission while suppressing enemy provocations coming across the border from Armenia. The incident came only two days after a visit by Armenia’s defense and foreign... MORE
Babchenko’s Staged Assassination: Political Consequences for Ukraine and the West
In the week since Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko’s staged assassination on May 29 (see EDM, May 31), plenty of smoke and dozens of unanswered questions remain. At this point, Ukrainian law enforcement and the security services have still not provided any clear evidence of the... MORE
Successful International Security Gathering in Belarus Brings Together East and West
In his May 24 speech at the Minsk Dialogue forum, “Eastern Europe: In Search of Security for All,” President Alyaksandr Lukashenka reminded that Belarus came forward with the initiative to launch a new large-scale international dialogue on security that should strive to overcome existing disagreements... MORE
The Kerch Strait Bridge: A Double-Edged Sword for Northwest Caucasus
Despite wide international condemnation, on May 16 the Russian Federation completed the first phase of construction of a ten-mile bridge across the Kerch Strait, which links Russia proper with the occupied Crimean peninsula (TASS, May 16). The Kerch Bridge will have serious economic, social, demographic... MORE
Gazprom Presses Ahead With Widening Its Access to European Energy Market
Gazprom and the Turkish government signed a protocol, on May 26, on building another section of the Turk Stream pipeline that will deliver Russian natural gas to Turkey and Europe (Gazprom.com, May 26). Moreover, the Russian gas giant and the Turkish pipeline company BOTAŞ agreed to establish a joint venture to... MORE
India and Kyrgyzstan Deepen Their Military Cooperation
On May 14, Indian and Kyrgyzstani alpine special forces troops began a two-week joint training exercise at Kyrgyzstan’s Military Base 20636. The exercise included both lectures and practical classes on tactical, mountain and fire training, as well as survival techniques in mountainous conditions (AKIPress, May... MORE
Kremlin’s Proxy Attacks on Last Vestiges of Russian Federalism
At the end of April, the Khural (parliament) of the Republic of Buryatia abolished the Constitutional Court of this federal subject (Kommersant, April 24). The decision was made on the initiative of the head of Buryatia, Alexei Tsydenov, who last year was appointed by the... MORE
Moscow Shifts Flotilla From Caspian to Azov Sea, Giving It a New Offensive Capability
In the last two weeks of May, Moscow has quietly shifted five naval vessels from the Caspian Flotilla to the Sea of Azov, a move the Russian authorities have cast as a step needed to defend against a Ukrainian attack on occupied Crimea. But both... MORE