Two days after the protest rally in Moscow on May 6 ended in violence, Vladimir Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, told one of the opposition leaders: “The demonstrators’ livers ought to be smeared on the asphalt for every wounded OMON riot policeman” (https://ilya-ponomarev.livejournal.com/482999.html). In Moscow,... MORE

Despite the constant upbeat reports from Russian ministries and agencies concerning the “neutralization” of 316 militants in the North Caucasus since the start of 2012, the number of militants in the region for some reason does not appear to be decreasing. “Neutralization,” as a rule,... MORE

The relatively lengthy process of forming a ruling cabinet and administration after Vladimir Putin’s inauguration on May 7, and the endorsement of Dmitry Medvedev as Prime Minister on May 8, ended with the creation of a seemingly cumbersome two-tier government. Medvedev’s government (as promised) is... MORE

If there is any refrain to recent developments in Belarus, it is political and socio-economic stabilization. First, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has not succumbed to political pressure – mainly from the United States – and confirmed Minsk as the venue for the 2014... MORE

On May 20-21, Circassian activists around the world commemorated the 148th anniversary of the end of the Russian-Circassian war in 1864. As the Winter Olympics in the former Circassian territory of Sochi approach, the Circassians’ historic memory and its political reverberations have also intensified. Even... MORE

On May 16, Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly met Moscow’s envoy to the North Caucasus, Alexander Khloponin at the president’s official residence in Novoogaryovo near Moscow. The meeting was part of the process of forming the new government after Putin was elected President of Russia... MORE

Hardly more than a handful of experts in Moscow paid attention to the G8 summit in Camp-David last week-end, and President Vladimir Putin’s absence accentuated the impression that Russia does not really belong to this exclusive club. The seven leaders had to work hard to... MORE

The ongoing political and security crisis in Syria has provided unexpected opportunities for Syria’s Kurdish community to initiate diplomatic discussions with Russia, China and Iran in its pursuit of regional autonomy, a near impossibility under the Assad regime before the outbreak of political violence as... MORE

Georgian billionaire and aspirant to power, Bidzina Ivanishvili, has started selling some of his assets in Russia for liquidity. Some of the proceeds will probably be ploughed into Ivanishvili’s political operations in Georgia and third countries. Ivanishvili amassed his $6.4-billion worth  in Russia during the... MORE

On May 12, Ingushetia’s most well-known opposition organization Mehk-Khel published an address to the newly elected president of Russia, Vladimir Putin. Ingushetia’s opposition called on Putin to dismiss the head of the region, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov. The authors of the open letter cited “critical political and... MORE