One of the Balkar people’s leaders, Sufian Beppaev, declared at a press conference on January 14 that a land ownership dispute is threatening peace and stability in Kabardino-Balkaria. A Russian constitutional court decision about the land distribution issue in the republic handed down in April... MORE

The outcome of the first round of elections in Ukraine is fairly clear, despite the usual procrastination with confirming the results, but it could have more impact on Russia’s stalled political modernization than the misanthropic political elite in Moscow expects. Taking a lesson from their... MORE

The Russian factor in this year’s Ukrainian presidential elections is essentially a straw man and far less important key than five years ago. Russian political technologists openly worked for one candidate (Viktor Yanukovych), while Moscow allegedly sought to poison the opposition candidate (Viktor Yushchenko) and... MORE

On January 12, a major gas pipeline was blown up with an explosive device in southern Dagestan. The pipeline stretching from Mozdok in North Ossetia to Kazimagomed in Dagestan connects Russian gas pipelines to the Azeri gas pipeline network. Eleven settlements, including the city of... MORE

Closer to the January 17 presidential election, the front-runners have grown suspicious of each other. Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and Party of Regions (PRU) leader Viktor Yanukovych, who as opinion polls predict should both make it into the runoff on February 7, have accused each... MORE

On December 28, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev proposed changing the federal law regarding the numbers of seats in regional parliaments throughout the Russian Federation. The new legislation is designed to establish rules governing the number of seats in regional parliaments, which stipulate a minimum and... MORE

On December 16 Gennady Pavluk, a prominent journalist in Kyrgyzstan, was forcefully pushed from a sixth floor window in Almaty with his limbs taped. Pavluk was delivered to a local hospital in a critical condition and died within a few days. Several Kazakh media outlets... MORE

According to Masrour Barzani, director of the Ajansi Parastini Asayishi Heremi Kurdistan (Kurdistan Region Security Protection Agency) of northern Iraq, Kurdish security agencies have the legal right to operate outside of the borders of the three provinces of the Kurdistan region. Barzani is the son... MORE

On December 30, Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka held a press conference with some 250 Belarusian journalists in the National Library of Belarus. He was asked approximately 40 questions, which focused on the financial crisis, language policy, trade and social projects, the new Customs Union with... MORE

A former employee of President Viktor Yushchenko’s secretariat has claimed that Yushchenko agreed to back the frontrunner, Party of Regions leader Viktor Yanukovych in the run-up to the January 17 presidential election. Both Yushchenko and Yanukovych denied this, but Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, against whom... MORE