Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili supervises Georgia’s policy toward Russia through his special envoy, veteran diplomat Zurab Abashidze. This appointment has led to the establishment of a bilateral negotiating channel between Abashidze and Russia’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister and State Secretary Grigory Karasin. In the absence... MORE

During the ten-day period from May 29 to June 9, five armed assaults on police officers were reported in Kabardino-Balkaria as the militant movement there appears to be experiencing a resurgence.On May 29, there was an armed clash between a road police unit and unidentified... MORE

June 12 is Russia Day, a national holiday traditionally celebrated by awarding Russia’s annual State Prizes in the fields of science, technology, the arts and literature, followed by a lavish reception in the Kremlin. This Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin awarded the State Prize to Sergei... MORE

Although lacking a parliamentary majority, the new Socialist-led government of Bulgaria, is hurriedly reversing critical energy sector decisions of the previous center-right government, thus bringing the country closer to Russia. Within two weeks of the cabinet’s appointment, discussions are underway to reopen the Belene Nuclear... MORE

The construction of barbed wire fences by Russian border troops, crossing from South Ossetia into previously uncontested Georgian territory (see Part One, EDM, June 11), caught Tbilisi and its Western partners by surprise. With this operation, Russia de facto annexed several additional bits of Georgian... MORE

The Russian Ministry of Education recently awarded, on a “competitive basis,” funding for the education of foreign students to some of the country’s universities. Circassian activists expressed indignation over the fact that no educational institutions in either Kabardino-Balkaria or Adygea received funding for foreign students.... MORE

The Soviet Union conducted a robust policy toward Africa, but that ended with the collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. As Russian analysts today admit, Africa, relatively speaking, fell off the map of Russian foreign policy after 1991. It is only in the... MORE

Just as was the case in Soviet times, ethnic groups in the Russian Federation have a chance to gain some collective benefits only if they receive official recognition by the state. But the process of obtaining such “official” status is one in which the players... MORE

Since President Vladimir Putin appointed Army-General Sergei Shoigu as Russia’s defense minister in November 2012, a number of subtle changes to the structure and organization of the Armed Forces indicate that the “Serdyukov reform”—a wide-ranging military reform program initiated by previous Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov—is... MORE

From its first days in power, the Georgian Dream coalition government under Bidzina Ivanishvili unilaterally set out to improve relations with Russia, and it has taken a series of unilateral steps toward that end. The government’s initiative stems from domestic, regional, and global considerations.Domestically, Georgian... MORE