Russian officials are intensifying their warnings about scuttling the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE), unless the West brings the adapted but unratified treaty into force while accepting the continued presence of Russian troops in Georgia and Moldova. Apart from that goal, Moscow aims... MORE

Post-Baathist Iraqi politics is undergoing a dramatic change, and the Sadrists and the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC), formerly known as the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), are leading the way by bringing a major shift in the balance of power.... MORE

On May 21, the Russian government announced its final approval of the second trunk line of the Baltic Pipeline System (BPS-2) for oil export from Russia’s port Primorsk through the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. This is Russia’s fifth major move within ten days... MORE

This week the Russian Ministry of Defense held a conference of sergeants and other serving non-commissioned officers at the base of the elite 27th army brigade, just outside Moscow. Some 424 NCOs were scheduled to attend, representing units from all across Russia and from all... MORE

The only undisputable fact about the Russia-EU summit in Samara on May 18 was that it actually took place; whether that constitutes a positive result is open to interpretation. Even Russia’s demonstratively self-confident President Vladimir Putin hardly finds much satisfaction in the mutual understanding that... MORE

In the last week, a series of attacks have hit the Kurdish areas of northern Iraq. On May 9, a truck bomb exploded outside of the Interior Ministry in Irbil, and on May 13, a truck bomb targeted the offices of the Kurdistan Democratic Party... MORE

This week U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, en route to Moscow, told journalists that Russo-American relations are "not easy," but that the tensions do not amount to a new Cold War (AP, RIA-Novosti, May 14). During the Cold War era there were times of... MORE

Despite its abundant natural resources, the Irkutsk region of Siberia has struggled to capitalize on its significant economic potential, mainly because it has been hampered by inadequate investment, Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov told a cabinet meeting on May 10. He also pointed out that average... MORE