President Dmitry Medvedev visited Dagestan on April 1, in an attempt to show his own country and the world that he views militant attacks in Moscow and in the remote province as equally serious (www.gazeta.ru, April 1). Following the heavy blows delivered by suicide bombers... MORE

Chechnya today (April 16) is marking the first anniversary of the end of the counter-terrorism operation in the republic with what it is calling a Day of Peace –a series of government-organized celebrations and festivities including concerts, sports events, a cross-country automobile/motorcycle race and even,... MORE

Russia has opted to support disarmament in the strategically important Caspian region, which is known to hold vast oil and gas resources. However, negotiations on the Caspian settlement continue as the littoral states apparently struggle to agree on crucial security and economic issues. Moscow “supports... MORE

Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Romanian are jointly launching a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, designated as the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Romania Interconnector (AGRI). The three governments regard their project as an element in the EU-planned Southern Corridor for Caspian gas to Europe.AGRI envisages transporting Azerbaijani gas by pipeline to... MORE

The second wave of revolution, which swept the Kyrgyz President, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, from power, has sent a clear warning to the ruling elite in Astana. The National Security Committee (KNB) has taken preventative measures to minimize the possible impact of the uprising in Bishkek and... MORE

One week after taking over state power, Kyrgyzstan’s provisional government members have met with various social and political groups, including businessmen, judges, leaders of diasporas, and journalists. The main message the government wants to deliver is that no one in the country will again depend... MORE

After the signing of the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START-3) in the Czech capital Prague with President, Barack Obama, last week, Dmitry Medvedev arrived in Washington for the two-day Nuclear Security Summit in a buoyant mood. Speaking in an often humorous tone at the... MORE

The recent deadly bombings in the Moscow metro, followed by subsequent attacks in the North Caucasus, have had reverberations in Turkey. These developments sparked a debate on the troubled relationship between suicide bombings and Islam, while at the same time highlighting the unique position Turkey... MORE

The Ukrainian constitutional court on April 8 approved the formation of the pro-presidential coalition in parliament in early March. The main controversy was over the right of individual people’s deputies to join the coalition against the will of their caucuses. The court decided that deputies... MORE