The significance of Leonid Ivashov's and Valery Manilov's dismissals from Russia's Defense Ministry remains difficult to gauge. One the one hand, they are believed to have been connected to former Defense Minister Igor Sergeev and their removal, therefore, is seen simply as part of a... MORE

The first round of voting in the election for governor of Nizhegorod Oblast took place on July 12. None of the candidates won an outright majority, which means that a run-off will have to be held. Even so, the result has sent a jolt through... MORE

Russia's governors last week graphically demonstrated their attitude toward the State Duma's attempt to limit their right to run for third terms in office. A week earlier, the lower house of parliament had amended current legislation and reduced to ten the number of governors with... MORE

Following the violent death of a prominent opposition figure in police custody and international demands for an honest investigation of the case, the government of Uzbekistan faces a test of its credibility. The victim, Shovrug Ruzimuradov, 44 years old and the father of seven, was... MORE

Russia and the United States have found themselves at odds on a host of international agreements in recent months, the most obvious being the clash over the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and Bush administration plans to deploy a ballistic missile defense system. On this and several... MORE

The State Duma went into summer recess on July 14, a day highlighted by an eleven-hour second reading of a new Land Code allowing Russians and foreigners to buy and sell commercial and residential plots in cities and villages--representing, according to the government, only 2... MORE

The Land Code was just one among a staggering 130 Kremlin-sponsored bills the State Duma passed during its last session. Among the other measures were: --A labor code opposed by the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) but made possible thanks to a compromise... MORE

On July 11-12 Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin paid an impromptu visit to Moscow for discussions with President Vladimir Putin and other top Russian officials, his second to the Kremlin since becoming president in April. By all unofficial accounts, this visit was arranged between Voronin and... MORE

Moldova's President Voronin requested his visit toMoscow with venting his indigation about the Duma's and the Transdniesterleadership's latest anti-Moldovan steps in mind. These steps have forced even the Communist authorities in Chisinau to question Russia's good faith as a mediator, and to declare that no... MORE

At the same time as President Vladimir Voronin's visit to Moscow, a Russian-Moldovan joint exercise began at the Kantemirovskaya Division's training grounds in Naro-Fominsk, Moscow Region. Moldovan Defense Minister Colonel Victor Gaiciuc attended the opening phase of the exercise. Russia's Defense Ministry has ensured ample... MORE