China’s European Satellite Launch Sets New Milestones On October 7, a Chinese Long March-3 rocket blasted off from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, Sichuan Province, delivering a French Eutelsat communications satellite into orbit. This marked the first Chinese launch of a Western communications satellite since the... MORE

The arrival of fall has not seen a decline in rebel attacks in Dagestan after a violent summer. Indeed, given the ferociousness of the daily battles between government forces and the insurgents in the republic, it is amazing that the head of Dagestan, Magomedsalam Magomedov,... MORE

The Russian defense ministry and defense industry have continued to trade insults as they quarrel over how to spend increased budget allocations earmarked to rearm the military with modern weapons. To keep up the pressure, the defense ministry has been using leaks to the press... MORE

The scandal over the brutal dispersal of a lawful protest in the Dagestani capital city of Makhachkala on October 3 is growing. On October 10, the organizers of the protest held a demonstration to complain about violations of their rights by the police. Some witnesses... MORE

Russian presidential elections are frequently preceded by an apparent promise to reduce or abandon conscription and move towards an all-volunteer force. Vladimir Putin’s imminent return to the Kremlin has proved to be no exception. On September 30, Colonel-General Vasily Smirnov the Chief of the Main... MORE

For almost eight years, Russia has not allowed OSCE’s election-observation agency, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), to observe parliamentary and presidential elections in that country. Russia’s next elections are scheduled to be held on December 4, 2011 for the Duma, and... MORE

On October 6, the Kavkazsky Uzel (Caucasian Knot) website reported widespread human rights abuses in Karachaevo-Cherkessia. The Russian Public Chamber under the Russian president voiced concern over large-scale arrests of Muslims in the republic. Over 80 people were arrested in Karachaevo-Cherkessia in connection with a... MORE

The European Commission has launched a round of inspections at Gazprom’s affiliate companies in EU member countries. This is the opening stage in an anti-trust investigation of the Russian monopoly’s activities in European Union territory (see EDM, October 3). It is an unprecedented move for... MORE

The crucial economic signal for Russia last week was the price slide for the Urals oil blend below the $100 per barrel level, which is not only a symbolic watershed but also an inflection mark on which the Russian budget goes into red (Kommersant-FM, www.gazeta.ru,... MORE

Two suspected rebels were killed in Kabardino-Balkaria today (October 7), during a special operation in the city of Tyrnyauz. The operation began yesterday, when police blockaded a group of four suspected militants in a five-story apartment building in the city. According to the authorities, the... MORE