Several Jordanian newspapers and websites published details in early June about 24-year-old Jordanian Anas Khalil Khadir, stating that he was killed in Chechnya after joining the jihad there. Khadir’s family members, who live in Zarqa (a city located east of Jordan’s capital city of Amman),... MORE

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s introductory visit to Azerbaijan undoubtedly helped the Obama administration to form a clearer understanding of Azerbaijan’s priorities and policies. With the administration approaching its mid-term point, and the US ambassadorship in Baku still vacant, such clarifications were overdue. President, Ilham... MORE

US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, visited Azerbaijan on July 4 as part of a tour of the South Caucasus. Her schedule apparently allocated a mere half-day for official business in each of the three capitals, contributing to perceptions of this regional tour as perfunctory.... MORE

On June 29, Dagestan’s President, Magomedsalam Magomedov, delivered his first annual presidential address to the parliament and people of the republic. Magomedov described the contemporary situation in the republic as “complicated, problematic and even prone to crisis.” He tried to strike a balance between criticizing... MORE

On July 2, the newspaper Vedomosti unveiled Aleksandr Khloponin’s long-promised ambitious plan to develop the North Caucasus Federal District. The three possible scenarios in the North Caucasus are described as inertial, basic and optimal, with the last being favored the most. The optimal scenario is... MORE

US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, paid a six-hour visit to Georgia on July 5, as part of a tour of five countries in five days. Her Georgia visit was the first by a top US official since Vice-President, Joseph Biden, visited exactly one year... MORE

International demand for Azeri gas (EDM, July 1) is also rising outside the European Union. It is mostly driven by the anticipation of post-crisis industrial recovery and by considerations of supply security through diversification.Russia’s Gazprom is preparing in its own way for Europe’s post-crisis recovery.... MORE

Insurgency-related violence took place throughout the North Caucasus this past week, with incidents reported in Dagestan, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria and Chechnya. A freight train was the target of a bombing in Dagestan today (July 2). The incident took place on the Manas-Achi railway line around 5:25... MORE

The US and Russian presidents’ nibbling at hamburgers has had little, if any, effect on the situation in the North Caucasus. Even the US State Department’s decision to designate Doku Umarov as a would-be threat to American interests (www.rus.ruvr.ru, June 24) might be seen as... MORE

Demand for Azerbaijani natural gas is surging, with potential buyers scrambling to Baku. The gas transit agreements, signed by Azerbaijan and Turkey on June 7, have opened prospects for unimpeded transportation of Azeri gas to consumer countries via Georgia and Turkey. These agreements, and consequent... MORE