— TRANSCAUCASUS:

Political issues suppressed by Soviet power have reappeared in Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. At the OSCE Summit, Presidents Robert Kocharian of Armenia and Haidar Aliev of Azerbaijan renewed their bilateral discussions on Karabakh, the ethnic Armenian region in Azerbaijan. Aliev is prepared to accept some element of Armenian self-determination, Kocharian some element of Azerbaijani authority. Although Kocharian’s domestic position is weaker after the assassination of his prime minister, the talks will continue. Amid much fanfare, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey used the OSCE summit to sign an agreement on construction of an oil pipeline from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku on the Caspian Sea, through Georgia, to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan. Completion of such a line would diminish Russian influence and leverage over the energy resources of the Caspian and Central Asia.