Latest Articles about The Caucasus
AZERBAIJAN OPPOSITION DENOUNCES ITS LONG-TIME SUPPORTER ON ELECTION COMMISSION
As Azerbaijan's November 6 parliamentary elections fade into the distance, the more the Azerbaijani opposition is realizing that they missed their best opportunity to secure a role in national politics. Having inflated their expectations prior to the elections and convinced themselves that November 6 would... MORE
IS THE WEST LOSING AZERBAIJAN?
The November 26 post-election violence in Baku marked the end of Western influence in Azerbaijan. After being severely beaten and humiliated by police forces, the pro-Western Azerbaijani opposition has no one else to blame but the West. Its hopes for U.S. support to "overthrow the... MORE
SOVIET-STYLE REFERENDUM FAILS TO BRING ARMENIA CLOSER TO EUROPE
The administration of President Robert Kocharian has enacted its controversial constitutional amendments following a November 27 referendum that raised Armenia's post-Soviet culture of electoral fraud to new heights. Its deeply flawed handling of the vote is also a serious setback for the West's cautious efforts... MORE
KERIMLI BATTLE-CRY SPARKS MELEE IN BAKU
An emotional outburst by Popular Front of Azerbaijan Party (PFAP) leader Ali Kerimli, urging confrontation with the police, turned the opposition's lawful, peaceful November 26 post-election protest rally into a violent melee with the Baku police. Kerimli's rhetoric differed markedly from that of Musavat Party... MORE
GEORGIA’S ACTION PLAN ON SOUTH OSSETIA: A TEST FOR THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
Georgia has begun implementing this month the first phase of its action plan for a political settlement of the South Ossetia conflict. This first phase consists mainly of socio-economic measures, such as humanitarian assistance to South Ossetia's population and laying the groundwork for the post-conflict... MORE
MOSCOW AND OSCE CHAIRMANSHIP BLINDSIDING GEORGIA ON SOUTH OSSETIA
Following Georgia's presentation of a political settlement plan on South Ossetia to the OSCE Permanent Council, the Russian side has apparently enlisted the OSCE Chairmanship's assistance in derailing Georgian initiatives on that issue ahead of the OSCE's year-end ministerial conference. Anxious to avoid controversy at... MORE
SEPARATISTS IN GEORGIA CLOSELY MONITORING UN SECURITY COUNCIL DELIBERATIONS ON KOSOVO
The leaders of Georgia's breakaway regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, are anxiously watching developments in Serbia's separatist region, Kosovo. The sudden interest stems from the UN Security Council's October 24 decision to start talks about the future status of Kosovo. If the international community recognizes... MORE
INTERNATIONAL MONITORS SPLIT OVER AZERBAIJAN ELECTIONS
The November 6 parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan drew significant international attention, partly driven by the desire to see if another democratic "color revolution" would take place in the post-Soviet region. Foreign journalists and international observers flooded the streets of Baku. Historically a geopolitical battleground, Azerbaijan... MORE
NATO PEACEKEEPING TROOPS IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS?
During his November 9 visit to Armenia, NATO South Caucasus Liaison Officer Romualds Razuks declared that NATO is ready to deploy peacekeeping forces to the South Caucasus, if necessary. Razuks stressed that any potential deployment would be within the context of the OSCE Minsk group... MORE
WILL AZERBAIJAN’S OPPOSITION CHOOSE TURMOIL AS A STRATEGY?
Emboldened by certain international monitors' biased assessments, and ignoring the more objective evaluations of Azerbaijan's parliamentary elections, opposition leaders have launched street actions to press for the annulment of the results of the November 6 parliamentary vote and for holding new elections country-wide. The radical... MORE