Latest Articles about The Caucasus
Rebels and Pro-Moscow Forces in Shoot-Out near Chechen Village
Russian news agencies reported on February 9 that one Chechen Interior Ministry officer was killed and two wounded in a battle that took place that day between Chechen law-enforcement personnel and members of “illegal armed formations” in southeastern Chechnya. Citing Chechnya Interior Ministry, Interfax reported... MORE
Zakaev Rejects Kadyrov’s Invitation
Akhmed Zakaev, the London-based prime minister of the separatist Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (ChRI) government-in-exile, responded to Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov’s claim in an interview published the previous day that he had spoken to Zakaev about conditions for his return to Chechnya. Zakaev told the... MORE
Austrian Prosecutors Were Investigating Israilov’s Charges against Kadyrov
Austrian prosecutors said on February 10 that they have investigated Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov for alleged torture and other abuses in Chechnya based on a criminal complaint filed in Austria by Umar Israilov, the former rebel-turned-Kadyrov-bodyguard who was shot to death in Vienna on January... MORE
Russia’s Coming War with Georgia
Six months after the French-brokered agreement ended the Russo-Georgia war on August 12, 2008 the ceasefire continues to be fragile with constant incidents that both sides describe as "provocations." Last month the Defense Ministry of the separatist South Ossetia said Georgia was moving troops towards... MORE
Deep Concern in Baku after CSTO News
The summit of the heads of states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) on February 4 in Moscow brought unexpected, yet alarming news for Baku. The members of the organization have decided to create collective rapid reaction forces: the first ever joint military forces... MORE
Turkey and Armenia Move Closer to a Deal on Formal Diplomatic Relations
In light of recent events surrounding Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's harsh denunciation of Israeli policies in Gaza, one of the emerging concerns of Turkish diplomats is that there may be "a possible attempt in the U.S. Congress to recognize the events of 1915 as... MORE
Salafi-Jihadis Turn Their Attention to the North Caucasus
In his recent audio tape expressing sympathy with the people of Gaza, the leader of al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, named Chechnya as one of the Muslim areas that have been oppressed by the superpowers of the world order. While this is a normal position for... MORE
Kadyrov Courts Akhmed Zakaev
The end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 were marked by yet another flurry of media reports surrounding the key Chechen resistance movement political figure, Akhmed Zakaev.Zakaev is the former commander of the Chechen resistance during the first military campaign of 1994-1996 and subsequently... MORE
Rebels in Ingushetia Target Police and Servicemen
Interfax reported on February 3 that a bomb blast damaged a police car in the village of Surkhakhi in Ingushetia’s Malgobek district. A law-enforcement source told the news agency that the improvised explosive device, which consisted of 400 grams of TNT, a mobile phone and... MORE