Latest Articles about Domestic/Social

Dagestani Authorities Create ‘Control and Prophylactic Lists’ for Suspected Salafists
Mass arrests of parishioners of mosques associated with the Salafist movement have become routine in Dagestan. For example, on July 15, the police cracked down on the mosque on Vengerskikh Boitsov Street, in Makhachkala, when up to 50 parishioners were detained (Newsru.com, July 15). Exactly... MORE

Is Russian-Occupied Abkhazia Governable?
The Russian-occupied separatist Georgian region of Abkhazia held a referendum on July 11 to decide whether the population supported holding early presidential elections. The referendum, which the opposition had demanded, ended up being declared invalid by the Abkhazian Central Election Commission (CEC) because barely 1... MORE

Salafists in Ingushetia Emerging as a Mainstream Force
Ingushetia’s governor, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, recently declared: “There are no Wahhabis [Salafists] or Wahhabi mosques in Ingushetia; it is time for everyone to realize that! Those differences that we have today, we are gradually overcoming.” Even though Ingushetia is Russia’s smallest republic, it is far from... MORE

Georgia May Become a Key Destination for North Caucasians if EU Grants It Visa-Free Entry
Migration from the North Caucasus, specifically from Chechnya, to Europe has increased this year. In the first six months of 2016, the number of migrants from Russia to Germany rose two-fold compared to the same period in 2015, and over 80 percent of those migrants... MORE

Moscow Seeks to Put Ukraine’s Smallest Nationalities in Play Against Kyiv
The ethnic-Ukrainian share of Ukraine’s population is now greater than the ethnic-Russian share of the Russian Federation’s population—and significantly larger if one does not include Russian-occupied Crimea and Donbas in the Ukrainian estimation. Despite that, Moscow continues to try to play the ethnic card in... MORE

Circassians Divided Over Turkish Coup Attempt and Its Aftermath
Many from Turkey’s North Caucasian diaspora supported President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during the failed July 15 coup. At least some North Caucasians, however, have doubts about extending their support to the Turkish president. The Circassian activists are divided over how much Circassians should be involved... MORE

Russia’s Economy Deteriorates as Putin Focuses on Squabbles Among Siloviki
President Vladimir Putin is not taking a summer vacation. He has instead maintained a busy schedule of meetings with government officials and regional governors. But his grip on the steering wheel of Russia’s foreign and domestic policy is far from steady. The heavily censored Russian... MORE

Belarus: Change Is in the Offing
The evolving political dynamics of Belarus are causing an unprecedented shift in policy stances and viewpoints that were heretofore considered immovable. Thus, some of the opinions that used to be routinely associated with the West-friendly opposition are today often being embraced by the government itself.... MORE

Non-Chechen Candidates from Moscow Plans to Run for Seats Representing the North Caucasus in Upcoming Parliamentary Elections
On September 18, 2016, Chechnya along with the rest of Russia will vote in the elections to the Russian State Duma. Chechens will also elect the governor of their republic, where the only plausible candidate is Ramzan Kadyrov. The three alternative candidates for Chechnya’s governor... MORE

Depopulation—Invisible Threat to Latvian Security
Latvia experienced a population decline of 8.7 percent in the last year. From among the 28 members of the European Union (the United Kingdom has not yet officially left), only Lithuania has had a larger drop in the number of its residents (11.3 percent). Of... MORE