Last week Hugo Chavez, the flamboyant leftist President of Venezuela, while meeting in Moscow with President Dmitry Medvedev, announced the recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia -the Georgian breakaway regions, occupied by Russian troops during the short war in August 2008. Venezuela... MORE

On September 15 Russia officially warned that it would intercept and detain Georgian coastal guard boats in the Black Sea, if these attempt to interfere with ships that trade with Abkhazia, or if the Georgian boats otherwise trespass Abkhazia's "maritime border" into "Abkhaz waters." The... MORE

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu met the leaders of opposition parties as part of his attempt to brief them about recent developments in Turkish foreign policy, and solicit their support for the government's "Armenian opening." On August 31, Turkey and Armenia announced the details of a... MORE

On September 15 in Moscow, the Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov signed agreements on military cooperation with the "defense ministers" (Russian citizens Kishmaria and Tanayev) of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. On the same occasion Russia's Border Guard Service command, subordinated to the Federal Security Service... MORE

As the situation in the Khyber Pass deteriorates the region of the South Caucasus is becoming an increasingly viable option for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) non-military supply routes to Afghanistan. In March 9-11, transportation and logistics experts from Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan met... MORE

The Turkish-Armenian agreement on September 1 to start political consultations aimed at establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries has once again raised concerns in Baku. It is only four months since the Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Baku and assured Azerbaijani politicians... MORE

On September 9 the United Nations General Assembly condemned the "forced displacement" of the population from Georgia's Abkhazia and South Ossetia territories, strongly upheld the displaced populations' right to return there, and defined these territories as parts of Georgia.Georgia had initiated the General Assembly's resolution... MORE

The plight of the Turkish captain of a tanker intercepted by Georgian authorities while carrying goods en route to Abkhazia highlighted the dilemmas of Turkey's position on the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict.Since the war last August, Georgia has blockaded the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia... MORE

On August 31 a joint statement issued by Turkey and Armenia announced that both had agreed to start talks on the establishment of diplomatic ties and the development of bilateral relations. The parties initialed two protocols to regulate these issues, and the consultations on these... MORE

Armenia and Turkey, after an impasse lasting several months, have made further significant progress in their dialogue welcomed and facilitated by the international community. The governments of the two neighboring states plan to sign by mid-October agreements envisaging the establishment of diplomatic relations and the... MORE