There has been a perceptible change of mood in the development of the political crisis in Russia in the week that has passed since the mass rallies in Moscow – with just three weeks remaining until the presidential elections. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has gained... MORE

Authorities in Tajikistan have recently announced a number of high-profile arrests on corruption and narcotics-trafficking charges. Most arrests were triggered by President Emomali Rahmon’s harsh criticism of the “corrupt” and “nepotistic” practices in the country’s military and law-enforcement sectors. During a televised government meeting on... MORE

On the second anniversary of Viktor Yanukovych’s election as Ukraine’s fourth president, threats of visa black lists, sanctions and international sanctions by the European Union and the US are growing (see EDM, January 6). Without a halt to its undemocratic policies, Ukraine will rank alongside... MORE

Aleksei Navalny, the anti-corruption blogger and rising star of the movement in opposition to Vladimir Putin, yesterday (February 9) accused the Chechen Interior Ministry of embezzling federal funds. Navalny wrote in his blog that he conducted his own investigation of purchases by the Chechen Interior... MORE

No authority in NATO has endorsed or in any way encouraged the Euro-Atlantic Security Initiative’s (EASI) proposals to introduce Russia into a redefined “Euro-Atlantic security community,” implying decision-making powers for Russia alongside the United States and European Union (see EDM, February 9). EASI is a... MORE

After Moscow’s refusal to cut gas prices for this year, Kyiv has threatened to cut its imports from Russia between 27 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas and 33 bcm from the 40 bcm imported by the national oil and gas company Naftohaz Ukrainy last... MORE

From January 31 through February 1, Yerzhan Kazykhanov made his first visit to Washington as Kazakhstan’s new Minister of Foreign Affairs. He met Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and a number of influential US government and business leaders. The parties generally agreed that economic and... MORE

The leadership of the North Caucasian militants is attempting to capitalize on the rising tensions in Russian society. As popular protests against the return of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to the Russian presidency spread, the leader of the North Caucasian armed resistance, Doku Umarov, tried... MORE

The Euro-Atlantic Security Initiative (EASI), a high-profile group of Western and Russian authors, proposes Western accommodation with the existing situation in the four post-Soviet conflicts (Transnistria, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Karabakh). EASI has presented a study with policy recommendations, “Historical Reconciliation and Protracted Conflicts,” to NATO... MORE

Numerous countries continue to face instability and unrest amid fragile global economic conditions, failing political systems and inadequate responses to socio-economic challenges. In Central Asia, local autocracies will grapple with pressures for political change, Islamic militancy, social unrest and ethnic tensions. They also face the... MORE