Russia plunged deeper into potential conflict with its major western trading partners over the weekend following threats by government leaders February 29 to raise import tariffs by up to 20 percent. The executive commission of the European Union warned March 1 that such an action... MORE

1. Interfax, February 29 2. Financial Times, March 1 3. Interfax, February 29; see also Monitor, February 28 4. Nezavisimaya gazeta, February 28 5. Interfax, February 29 6. Nezavisimaya gazeta, February 27 7. Russian TV, February 26; Nezavisimaya gazeta, February 27; Interfax, February 28 &... MORE

Yesterday in his first news conference as prime minister and in a broadcast to the country the previous day, Mindaugas Stankevicius outlined a government program aimed at overcoming the country's financial difficulties and banking crisis. The program envisages "a firm monetarist policy," stability of the... MORE

The Abkhaz Supreme Soviet passed a law February 28 on the holding of referenda in the unrecognized republic. A referendum may be initiated by the president, the legislature, or citizens if they collect at least 10,000 signatures. Parliament chairman Sokrat Djindjolia denied any connection between... MORE

Georgian president Eduard Shevardnadze unveiled February 28 proposals for a coexistence and cooperation pact to be known as "Peaceful Caucasus." The Caucasus has turned into "an arena of confrontation, national exclusivism, and aggressive separatism," Shevardnadze said. He called on Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, and... MORE

In a report issued February 28 in Tashkent, the International Narcotics Control Board yesterday named Afghanistan and Pakistan as the main sources of narcotics being transported to Europe via Central Asia. In Central Asia itself, the Board identified five key areas of narcotics production, mainly... MORE

Iran announced yesterday an intensification of its consultations with Russia and the Tajik regime in promoting a political settlement of the Tajikistan conflict. Iranian foreign minister Ali Akbar Velayati said in Dushanbe that Iran shares Russia's aim of maintaining stability in Central Asia, and that... MORE

Concern that nuclear materials in the former Soviet Union remain "very vulnerable" to theft has prompted the Clinton administration to allocate $330 million for new security measures over the next six years, a U.S. Energy Department official said February 28. Visits to several nuclear storage... MORE

The first in what will be a series of stops by Russia's foreign minister aimed at convincing eastern European leaders to rethink intentions to join NATO got off to an inauspicious start in Bratislava yesterday. In his first trip to the former East Bloc, Yevgeny... MORE

Some of the Russian military's latest measures in the North Caucasus have rekindled fears that the Chechnya war may spread to nearby republics and provoke interethnic conflicts. Units of North Ossetia's Internal Affairs Ministry have joined Russian border troops in guarding Chechnya's and Ingushetia's administrative... MORE