Latest Articles about The Caucasus
Poland Detains Chechen Rebel Envoy as Violence Continues in the North Caucasus
London-based Chechen rebel envoy Akhmed Zakaev was arrested today (September 17) in Poland, where he had traveled to attend the World Congress of the Chechen People taking place in Warsaw on September 16-18. A Polish police spokesman told Reuters that Zakaev, who was granted political... MORE
The Specter of Suicide Bombing Haunts the North Caucasus
Just four days after the September 5 suicide bombing in Buinaksk, Dagestan, reportedly carried out by Zamir Terekbaev, a 26-year-old resident of the village of Andrei-Kurgan in the Neftekumsky district of Russia’s Stavropol region, originally from Dagestan, a powerful blast rocked Vladikavkaz, the capital of... MORE
Security in Kabardino-Balkaria Fails to Improve After Reappointment of President
On September 11, a police armored truck and a gas pipeline were blown up in the Elbrus district, located in the mountainous part of Kabardino-Balkaria. The attack left five servicemen injured and several settlements without gas supplies (ITAR-TASS, September 11). The strength of the blast... MORE
Black Sea LNG Project Draws on Gas from Azerbaijan
During a meeting on September 13-14 in Baku, Presidents Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia, and Traian Basescu of Romania, as well as Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, announced the launching of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. Designated as the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Romania... MORE
North Caucasus Reality Check on Russian Military Reform
Although the second anniversary of the Russia-Georgia War was marked by little sense of euphoria in Moscow, the operational lessons drawn by the Russian military resulted in the current reform of the armed forces being closely associated with the Five Day War (EDM, August 9).... MORE
Nabucco Pipeline, Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz Field Require Synchronized Development
Russia seems to have lost its lobbying battle for South Stream and against Nabucco in Europe (EDM, July 13, 14, August 3). At present, Moscow seeks as a last resort to negate the availability of gas supplies to the Nabucco project in the Caspian basin.... MORE
Moscow’s North Caucasus Modernization Plans Fall into Limbo Following Series of Suicide Bombings
On September 9, a suicide bomber attacked the central market place in Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia. Seventeen people died and 173 received injuries of varying degrees of severity as a result of the attack (RIA Novosti, September 12). The suspected suicide bomber reportedly crossed from the... MORE
Suicide Bombers Further Destabilize Dagestan
August 2010 saw violent incidents all across Russia’s North Caucasus region, above all in Dagestan, where rebels and Russian police dealt heavy blows to each other. On August 21, forces from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) and local police supported by army units conducted a... MORE
Ingush Rebels Tied to Major Suicide Attack in Vladikavkaz
The death toll from the September 9 suicide bombing in Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, rose today (September 10) to 18 (a toll that includes, according to some reports, one suicide bomber) with the number of wounded put at 158, more than 100 of whom remain hospitalized.... MORE
Suicide Bombings and Attacks on Infrastructure Increase Volatility in Troubled Dagestan
On September 5, a suicide bomber driving a car packed with explosives attacked a Russian infantry military training camp near Buinaksk in Dagestan. According to official sources, four servicemen died in the attack and 35 were injured. Policemen who arrived at the site of the... MORE