The Russian arms buisness is producing losses for everyone--except some now wealthy dealers Secrets of the Russian Arms Business by Aleksandr Zhilin The Russian government commission investigating Russian governmentfirms involved in arms sales abroad has been shocked by its discoveryof open and widespread violations of... MORE

The CIS summit in Minsk highlights differences among the 12 member states rather than agreement A CIS Summit Of Diminished Expectations by Vladimir Socor The May 14 referendum in Belarus, interpreted by that country'spresident as a mandate for tighter integration and eventual unificationwith Russia, has... MORE

The KGB has spawned a large set of offspring, but the central purpose of the Russian security services remains the same--the defense of the Russian political elite from domestic and foreign challenges How Many Secret Services Does Yeltsin Have? by Victor Yasmann Since the fall... MORE

Moscow exploits threats of a "new cold war" to silence Western critics by Paul A. Goble The frequently heard suggestion that any opposition to Russianpolicies will inevitably lead to a new cold war provides Moscowand its friends with a useful rhetorical weapon, trivializes whatthe real... MORE

The Week Ahead: The Russian military will continue to fight even if the Chechens begin to talk peace The war in Chechnya, fall out from the CIS summit in Minsk, andcontinued squabbling in Moscow and the regions about how, andeven whether, Russia will hold parliamentary... MORE

The Week Just Past: Yeltsin's veto of the parliamentary bill sets up new squabbles in Moscow and raises new questions about Yeltsin's plans for future elections Yeltsin's veto of the Russian parliament's election bill, OSCEefforts to convene peace talks in Chechnya while Russian attackscontinue, and... MORE

The Kurds remain caught in the "Transcaucasian Triangle" by David Nissman Turkish charges that Russia and Armenia are supporting the KurdishPKK movement in Turkey, and the May 17 decision by Kurds livingin Armenia to refuse to take part in the upcoming Armenian electionsare only the... MORE

Lebed warns the West that Russia will be back An Interview with Gen. Lebed on Russia's Role in the World Reproduced below is the third installment of an interview with Gen. Aleksandr Lebed, the commander of the 14th Russian Armyin Moldova's Transdniestr region, and an... MORE

Lithuania in search of a geopolitical vision by Raimundas Lopata and Vytautas Zalys The end of the Cold War and the collapse of the USSR transformedthe geopolitical order of the world. The old bipolar world whichprovided stability and security has been replaced by a more... MORE

The Chechen war will expand by John Colarusso Despite Chechen appeals this week for peace talks, Moscow seemsdetermined to press ahead with its subjugation of the Chechens.John Colarusso, a longtime student of the Caucasus and someonewith close ties to many of the leaders in the... MORE