After the swift annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula by the Russian Federation, multiple anxious voices warned that a similar fate is being prepared for Transnistria, the Russia-backed secessionist region of Moldova. As a significant signal, the topic of Transnistria made it into the recent discussion... MORE

On April 3, Kabardino-Balkaria’s parliament voted to reject direct elections for the republic in favor of appointment by the Russian president. Adalbi Shkhagoshev, a member of the republican parliament from United Russia, the country’s ruling party, told the newspaper Kommersant that the decision was taken... MORE

Most Western analysts accept as fundamental the ethnic divisions that were reified by Soviet leaders and consider Moscow’s divide and rule strategy only in terms of them, focusing for example on Russians and Ukrainians or Armenians and Azerbaijanis. But the Kremlin has never accepted as... MORE

Public statements by Russia’s defense minister, Army-General Sergei Shoigu, indicate that planning for the military and defense implications of absorbing Crimea into Russia is far advanced, while he has also provided a series of justifications for Moscow’s actions and thanked China for its “support.” Such... MORE

On April 4, the Bulgarian parliament passed on a first reading amendments to the energy law that would allow the Russian-led South Stream gas pipeline project to bypass European Union legislation. Disregarding a strong warning by the EU Commission, Bulgarian lawmakers voted to designate one... MORE

On April 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Moscow with Tatarstani President Rustam Minnikhanov, who informed Putin about his three recent visits to Crimea. Apparently acting as liaison between the Kremlin and the Crimean Tatars, Tatarstan’s president told Putin that the Crimean Tatar leaders... MORE

As the charged pause in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict drags on, policymakers in Moscow discover that their bold breakthrough into the territory beyond the boundaries of international law has brought rather unexciting consequences. Last Monday (March 31), President Vladimir Putin called German Chancellor Angela Merkel, seeking... MORE

The actions of Chechens in Syria—repeatedly examined in this publication over the past two years—is a complex issue, which involves, in particular, the symbiosis of North Caucasian perseverance and Middle Eastern Islamic radicalism. This emerging phenomenon is more dangerous to Russia than the current problems... MORE

The eyes of the world—especially those of analysts in the West—have been trained on the ongoing situation in Ukraine, but the situation inside Russia also shows signs of being affected by Crimea’s annexation. In particular, President Vladimir Putin’s defense of ethno-nationalism has invigorated Russia’s homegrown... MORE

In an attempt to change the statistics related to the armed underground movement in the North Caucasus, which damage the image of its republics, the authorities are turning a blind eye to human rights violations in the region.Fifteen years after the start of the Chechen... MORE