Recent events in Ingushetia, the smallest republic of the North Caucasus, have forced observers not to discount the Ingush armed resistance’s capabilities. In 2011, there were 108 casualties in the ongoing conflict in Ingushetia, including 70 dead and 38 injured. That was three times fewer... MORE

Last Thursday, President Vladimir Putin held a meeting with the leaders of the parties represented in the State Duma and responded to the official opposition’s very delicate reservations with the affirmation that “we have made absolutely the right decisions,” but their implementation would be reasonably... MORE

Pressure by international human rights bodies on Kazakhstan’s government is increasing as the trials of political opposition leaders for their role in the December 2011 riots in Zhanaozen are approaching. The leader of the unregistered “Alga!” (Forward) party Vladimir Kozlov, a politician and activist of... MORE

Those who follow developments in Dagestan cannot fail to notice that the republican leadership, in dealing with the militants, is trying to adopt the experience of neighboring Chechnya. The Dagestani authorities are setting up ethnic-based units along the lines of the Chechen Zapad and Vostok... MORE

Western governments continue to try to “shift” President Vladimir Putin and the Russian government on the crisis in Syria to allow the passage of a UN Security Council resolution to address the escalating violence. The proposed resolution would threaten to impose sanctions and possible military... MORE

The last ten years in China have been difficult ones, filled with tremendous opportunities and challenges as China has deepened the reform and opening policies of Deng Xiaoping—or so the official press now proclaims (People’s Daily, July 11, July 9). These editorials did not name... MORE

The relatively swift resolution of the protests in Shifang in southwestern Sichuan Province could mark a turning point in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) administration’s handling of the estimated 150,000 or so cases of mass incidents that erupt every year. While continuing to boost its... MORE

As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) careens toward the 18th Party Congress and a generational leadership transition, Beijing seems concerned with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and where it stands politically. CCP and PLA press have expressed these concerns in a variety of ways, whether... MORE

On July 7, in the capital of Dagestan, Makhachkala, the Council of Kumyk Elders gathered for an extraordinary meeting, which focused on issues of land redistribution in the republic. In order to make their voice heard, the Kumyks asked President Vladimir Putin to include an... MORE

Lidiya Yermoshina, chair of the Belarus Central Electoral Commission, long on the EU travel ban list, was invited to the Vienna-based July 12 OSCE conference “Democratic Elections and Election Observation.” Her deputy, Nikolay Lozovik, also under EU travel sanctions, was invited as well, and both... MORE