Latest Articles about The Caucasus
LARGE OPPOSITION RALLY SHATTERS NERVES OF AZERBAIJANI GOVERNMENT
Azerbaijani authorities have become seriously concerned about the success of the opposition rally held on Saturday, June 18, in Baku. More than 20,000 members of the election block "Azadliq" (Freedom), which unites the three largest opposition parties in the country -- Musavat, the Popular Front,... MORE
POPULAR SUPPORT INCREASES FOR DAGESTAN REBELS
May and early June brought intensified rebel attacks in Dagestan. On June 1, a bus carrying 20 policemen was bombed in Makhachkala, the capital (RIA-Novosti, June 1). Almost every night police patrols in the city are bombed, and the ambushes have recently spread to Khasavyurt.... MORE
GEORGIAN GOVERNMENT DEBATES DIRECT ELECTION FOR MAYOR OF TBILISI
A political debate about the method of electing the mayor of Tbilisi, as well as talks about the appropriate strategy for the forthcoming by-elections to the Georgian parliament, has led to a rapprochement among several opposition groups. Currently consultations are underway between the opposition New... MORE
TBILISI WARMS TO IDEA OF RESTORING RAIL LINK TO ABKHAZIA
The prospects of reopening the Georgian-Abkhaz railway line seem to be improving. The issue has been the subject of discussions at various high-profile meetings in recent months. The Georgian government has significantly softened its initial tough stance on the issue. Reopening the railway branch between... MORE
ETHNIC RUSSIANS IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS FACE DECISION TO EMIGRATE
"The exodus of the ethnic Russians is creating a problem for the whole North Caucasus," Russian President Vladimir Putin told a group of Cossack atamans (chieftains) during a meeting in Rostov-on-Don, the capital of southern Russia. "The exodus of the Russians means a loss of... MORE
AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT FINALLY INVITED TO WASHINGTON
On June 7, Azerbaijan Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov made a sensational announcement. According to him, President Ilham Aliev plans an official visit to the United States, and Azerbaijan's ambassador to Washington, Hafiz Pashayev, is in talks to determine the date of the visit. The news,... MORE
OPPOSITION DOUBTS FAIRNESS OF GEORGIA’S NEW ELECTORAL COMMISSION
The composition of Georgia's new Central Electoral Commission (CEC) has already raised doubts about the fairness of the coming elections. In April parliament amended the Georgian election code to change the composition of the CEC and lower-level election administrations. The main point of the change... MORE
WILL SOUTH OSSETIA HAVE ANOTHER BLOODY SUMMER?
Recent weeks have brought alarming developments from Georgia's separatist South Ossetia region. Kidnappings, militant statements, Russian military assistance to the separatists, and fruitless peace negotiations -- the same factors that contributed to armed conflict in the region last summer -- are fully present. On June... MORE
OSSETIA AND INGUSHETIA PROTEST KREMLIN PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENTS
On June 7, Taymuraz Mamsurov, the speaker of North Ossetian parliament, was officially declared the new leader of the republic. The process, which in other regions of Russia lasts for days or weeks, was completed in just a few hours. According to gazeta.ru, at 9:00... MORE
AZERBAIJANI OPPOSITION SCORES ITS FIRST VICTORY IN 19 MONTHS
On June 4, the Azerbaijani opposition achieved its greatest victory in the past 19 months. The ban on organizing and holding public rallies in the country was finally broken when Baku Mayor Hajibala Abutalibov agreed to authorize a request for street demonstration organized by a... MORE