TWO SABOTAGE ACTS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS.

The main pipeline carrying Russian gas to Georgia and Armenia was sabotaged by a bomb explosion November 12 on the territory of North Ossetia. The mainline has not yet been restored, and gas is moving in reduced amounts through a backup branch after a two-day interruption. In a similar act November 13, the railway going from Azerbaijan to Chechnya was sabotaged in Dagestan by a remote-controlled-bomb which disabled an 80-meter long stretch. (16)

Both acts occurred along the likely route of the pipeline planned to carry Azerbaijani oil to Russia. They point to the risks this project may face in the insecure environment of North Caucasus.

Georgian Parliamentary Elections Maximize Shevardnadze’s Strength.