Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
Who Was Behind the Recent Bombing in Stavropol?
Against the background of Chechen President, Ramzan Kadyrov’s, growing concerns about the number of rebels operating throughout Chechnya (EDM, May 28), it has been decided in the capital Grozny to set up a special commission charged with counting how many Chechens are in fact engaged... MORE
Georgia’s Political Landscape Reshaped After Local Elections
The Christian-Democrat Movement and the Alliance for Georgia laid a basis in recent local elections for the development of genuine opposition parties in Georgia. According to the final returns, these parties took the second and third place, with 12 percent and 9 percent, respectively, of... MORE
Georgia Returns to Stability and Growth After Local Elections
Candidates from Georgia’s governing party, the United National Movement (UNM), won the country-wide local elections on May 30, including the pivotal contest for the Tbilisi municipality, by large margins. The electoral process earned a positive net assessment from Western observers and also by the main... MORE
Moscow Objects to Patriots in Poland
Last week US-Russian relations were dominated by the arrival and deployment of US soldiers with Patriot missiles in Poland near the Russian border. The Patriot deployment was agreed between Warsaw and Washington to offset possible Russian threats to station Iskander ballistic missiles in Kaliningrad in... MORE
President Yanukovych Returns to Multi-Vector Foreign Policy
The Ukrainian government has ruled out membership of both the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and NATO. At the same time, integration with the European Union and cooperation with Russia top the list of foreign policy priorities for President, Viktor Yanukovych, and economic matters... MORE
Russian Military Prepares for Vostok 2010
Preparations are intensifying ahead of the Russian operational-strategic military exercise, Vostok 2010, scheduled for June 29 to July 8 in the Siberian and Far East military districts involving more than 10,000 servicemen under the command of Army-General, Nikolai Makarov, the Chief of the General Staff.... MORE
Turkey Prioritizes Independent Regional Policies in the Middle East and the South Caucasus
Turkey continued its regional diplomacy, following the historic visit by Russian President Medvedev to Ankara (EDM, May 20). Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan paid back-to-back trips to Greece, Iran and Azerbaijan, which underscored Turkey’s rising activism in its neighborhood, as well as highlighting divergence with the... MORE
Attack in North Caucasus’ Safest City Casts Doubts on Moscow’s Policies in the Region
Seven people died and over 40 were injured following the explosion near a concert hall in Stavropol on May 26. As of May 31, 32 people remained in the local hospital for treatment, five of whom were in critical condition (www.kavkaz-uzel.ru, May 31). According to... MORE
Chechen Fighters Hold their Ground Against Kadyrov
North Caucasus rebels have recently intensified their activity in Russia’s Kabardino-Balkaria and Dagestan republics, and Chechnya does not seem to be an exception. Chechnya’s leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, made yet another attempt last week to come up with an estimate on the total number of rebels... MORE
Stavropol Bombing – A Case of Russian Nationalists Targeting Chechens?
Today (May 28) was an official day of mourning in Stavropol Krai for seven people killed in the May 26 bomb blast in the city of Stavropol. A bomb packed with steel pellets hidden in a juice carton detonated near the city’s Palace of Culture,... MORE