After the Crimean (a.k.a. Eastern) war of 1853–1856 and the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1856 ending that war, the Russian Empire began to turn toward the final conquest of the Caucasian mountaineers.  Russia was finally able to turn an army of 200,000... MORE

The armed resistance movement in the North Caucasus has carried out suicide bombings ever since the start of the second military campaign in Chechnya.  On June 4, 2000, a 22-year-old Chechen woman, Khava Baraeva, detonated an explosive-laden truck near a Russian military target, killing three... MORE

On May 21, Circassians worldwide marked the 149th anniversary of the end of the Russo-Caucasian war. In the North Caucasus, the largest republic with a Circassian population, Kabardino-Balkaria, held multiple events marking the anniversary. Hundreds of young people staged a procession in the republic’s capital,... MORE

The armed conflict in the North Caucasus continues to kill and maim (www.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/224400/). Murders, kidnappings and explosions have become the daily routine in this part of Russia. Only suicide bombings carried out by the armed resistance groups provide a slightly different picture. Neither side of... MORE

In his childhood, Vladislav Surkov, an ethnic Chechen by birth, initially had his father’s surname, Dudaev—a surname that is related to the Zandak teip (clan) (www.anticompromat.org/surkov/surkbio.html). However, with Russian first and last names, he managed to achieve not simply a breathtaking career, but to become... MORE

Tatar and Bashkir civil organizations are moving toward the forging of an alliance, regional and Russian experts say. “Bashkir nationalists have tried to find support among Tatar and Ugro-Finnish nationalists for several years, but their attempts were unsuccessful,” Bashkir analyst Ed Murzin told the Regnum... MORE

In an interview with the Kavkazskaya Politika website, the well-known Circassian activist Ibragim Yaganov said Russia must take steps to alleviate the hardships it inflicted on the Circassians. Yaganov contrasted Russia’s policy of stubborn silence on the Circassian issue to the European colonial powers, which... MORE

The Jamestown Foundation has repeatedly reported on Hizb ut-Tahrir’s (HuT) activities in Russia over the past several years. And as the investigation of the Boston bombings progresses, reports are surfacing in the West that Tamerlan Tsarnaev interacted with Magomed Kartashov, the leader of the Dagestan-based... MORE

On May 3, groups of Karachay and Abaza youth clashed in Karachaevo-Cherkessia. According to a member of the Abaza organization, Janibek Kuzhev, the fight took place in the village of Psyzh in Abazin district of Karachaevo-Cherkessia. As Karachay youth tried to intimidatingly drive through the... MORE

In an effort to control “banditry” and rebel activity in the North Caucasus region, Russia’s Ministry of Interior is returning its sole armored train to service on the often dangerous rail lines of southern Russia. The main mission of the armored train, Kozma Minin, which... MORE