President Mikheil Saakashvili’s government has so strongly cemented Georgia-US ties that even opposition politicians, such as billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili who ignored the US until now, must reach out to Washington ahead of elections. Georgia is unquestionably the most Western-leaning among the formerly Soviet-ruled countries. Uniquely in... MORE

Several Eurasian leaders were among the 54 heads of state, deputy prime ministers, or foreign ministers who attended the March 26-27 Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea. The main objective of the summit was to prevent non-state actors such as terrorists or criminals from... MORE

With almost cyclical regularity, Georgia’s irreconcilable opposition campaigning against the government ends up turning against the institutional state (early-to-mid 1990s, 2007 and the following years’ “summer offensives”). Motivations can vary widely, but commonalities prevail and seem perennial, including high emotionalism and imaginative representations of politics.... MORE

As expected (see EDM, January 3, 4, 5), the Nabucco consortium has decided to reconfigure its project for a new role: a European continuation of the Azerbaijani-Turkish, Trans-Anatolia Gas Pipeline (TANAP) project. As TANAP plans to replace Nabucco on Turkey’s territory, Nabucco would link up... MORE

In March 2012, Russian policy toward the Georgian breakaway territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, as well as the Moldovan breakaway territory of Transnistria, took another turn. On March 16, the outgoing president of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev appointed the governor of Krasnodar region, Aleksandr Tkachev,... MORE

On March 16, President Dmitry Medvedev appointed Aleksandr Tkachev as Special Representative of the Russian President for Abkhazia. On March 21, Medvedev appointed Teymuraz Mamsurov as Special Representative of the Russian President for South Ossetia. And also on March 21, Medvedev appointed Dmitry Rogozin as... MORE

The South Caucasus has emerged as a battleground between Iran and its adversaries. Recent weeks have seen Iranian assassination attempts against Israeli diplomats in Baku and Tbilisi, a massive Israeli-Azerbaijani arms deal (EDM, March 7) and, most recently, the announcement that Azerbaijan’s national security ministry... MORE

With a flurry of conventions and behind-the-scenes discussions, Armenia’s leading political forces have officially begun preparations for upcoming parliamentary elections that will be critical for the political future of President Serzh Sargsyan. The election campaign is shaping up to be essentially a three-horse race between... MORE

Bidzina Ivanishvili acts as proprietary leader of his Georgian Dream movement and lesser dependent groups. Having entered politics only five months ago (October 2011), he sounds confident of winning the upcoming elections, on the strength of the movement that he funds from his wealth. However,... MORE

The latest update of Forbes’ billionaires’ list (www.forbes.com, March 7) raises Bidzina Ivanishvili’s net worth to $6.4 billion, up from the $5.5 billion listed by Forbes and confirmed by Ivanishvili’s office in 2011. The updated figure amounts to more than one half of Georgia’s annual... MORE