The Russian Duma's CIS Affairs Committee chairman Boris Pastukhov has been vested with a concurrent role as head of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly's (IPA) Commission on Peacekeeping. The IPA is composed of parliamentary deputies delegated by the legislatures of CIS member countries, and those delegates... MORE

As Russian-U.S. talks on arms control and other international issues continued yesterday in Washington, the two countries also resumed their jousting over long-standing U.S. objections to alleged improper Iranian-Russian military cooperation. The latest clash began on Monday of this week (April 24), when the U.S.... MORE

The Agrarian Party of Russia (APR), once closely associated with the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF), appears to be on the verge of a formal split. The APR is set to hold its plenum on May 20, and reports yesterday indicated that it... MORE

While the Agrarian Party of Russia and Liberal Democratic Party of Russia are reportedly experiencing severe crises, incipient splits within the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) could soon come out into the open. A new group, under the working name "Union of Peoples... MORE

Armenia's parliamentary majority, subservient to the military-backed government of Aram Sarkisian, has taken a first and preliminary step to impeach President Robert Kocharian. This majority--consisting primarily of the Unity parliamentary alliance and the Stability group of deputies--decided to make their move at a joint meeting... MORE

The Armenian economy collapsed in late 1999, following the October 27 assassination of Prime Minister Vazgen Sarkisian and seven leading parliamentary and government officials. According to the latest data from the CIS Statistical Committee, Armenia's GDP dropped by 6.3 percent in the fourth quarter, due... MORE

In a sudden and unexpected diplomatic defeat for Moscow, the fifty-three-nation UN Human Rights Commission yesterday adopted a resolution accusing Russia of widespread abuses in Chechnya. The resolution, sponsored by the European Union and co-sponsored by Canada, passed by a 25-7 vote margin, with 19... MORE

The EU's decision to push for the UN resolution condemning the Chechen war appears to highlight continuing tensions between Russia and continental Europe. Indeed, while the British government has all but dismissed concerns over the Caucasus war in order to build a new partnership with... MORE

General Gennady Troshev, federal commander in Chechnya, reported April 24 that fifteen Russian servicemen had been killed and six wounded in an attack on a troop column the previous day near the village of Serzhen-Yurt, in southern Chechnya's Argun Gorge. Several armored vehicles and fuel... MORE

The question of whether a political settlement to the Chechen conflict is in the offing remains. Top officials from Russia's "power ministries" continue to play down the possibility. General Valery Manilov, first deputy head of the Russian armed forces' general staff, yesterday completely rejected the... MORE