Latest Articles about The Caucasus
Disagreements Over Finances Emerge between Moscow and Chechen Government
Over 5,000 Chechen families have not received compensation earmarked by the Russian government for those who lost their homes and other property during the war. On April 20, Chechnya’s finance ministry promised to disburse the payments by the end of 2010, but it was unclear... MORE
Is the United States Losing Azerbaijan?: Part One
Azerbaijan’s long-standing alignment with the United States is rapidly unraveling in the wake of Washington’s recent policy initiatives. As perceived from Baku, those US initiatives fly in the face of Azerbaijan’s staunch support over the years to US strategic interests and policies in the South... MORE
Erdogan Reconnects Turkish-Armenian Normalization to Progress on Karabakh
On the sidelines of the nuclear summit in Washington on April 12-13, the Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and his Armenian counterpart, Serzh Sargsyan, discussed the Turkish-Armenian normalization efforts which currently face stalemate. Following the meeting, they reaffirmed their support for the normalization process,... MORE
Former Armenian President Signals Political Comeback
Almost two years after leaving office, the former Armenian President, Robert Kocharian, has signaled his intention to return to active politics and possibly the country’s leadership. A series of statements and actions by Kocharian and his political allies are widely seen as a challenge to... MORE
Russia’s Government-Sponsored Expert Community Reaches out to North Caucasus
On April 13 the Civic Chamber of Russia held preliminary hearings on its previous visits to Dagestan, Ingushetia, Karachaevo-Cherkessia and North Ossetia. Journalist Maxim Shevchenko, who is considered to be a Russian government loyalist, led the effort of the government-sponsored Civic Chamber to receive feedback... MORE
The Locus of Instability in the North Caucasus Shifts to Dagestan
President Dmitry Medvedev visited Dagestan on April 1, in an attempt to show his own country and the world that he views militant attacks in Moscow and in the remote province as equally serious (www.gazeta.ru, April 1). Following the heavy blows delivered by suicide bombers... MORE
Soldiers and Policeman Killed and Wounded in Chechnya
Chechnya today (April 16) is marking the first anniversary of the end of the counter-terrorism operation in the republic with what it is calling a Day of Peace –a series of government-organized celebrations and festivities including concerts, sports events, a cross-country automobile/motorcycle race and even,... MORE
AGRI: First Ever LNG Project in the Black Sea
Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Romanian are jointly launching a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, designated as the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Romania Interconnector (AGRI). The three governments regard their project as an element in the EU-planned Southern Corridor for Caspian gas to Europe.AGRI envisages transporting Azerbaijani gas by pipeline to... MORE
Theories Behind Moscow Metro Attacks Abound
On April 11, the Dagestani branch of the Federal Security Service (FSB) declared it was fighting a group of Islamist insurgents led by Magomedali Vagabov in the Karabudakhkent district of Dagestan (Interfax, April 11). Mariam Sharipova, who is thought to have been one of the... MORE
Azerbaijan Intensifies Diplomacy Vis-à-Vis Turkey
As Turkey’s Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, visited the US on April 12 to discuss regional security matters, including the Turkish-Armenian protocols and the resolution of the Karabakh conflict, the Azeri government stepped up its efforts to lobby Ankara. On April 1, a large Azeri... MORE