Latest Articles about Foreign Policy
Medvedev Re-energizes Russian Caspian Policy in Baku
Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, paid an official visit to Azerbaijan last weekend and added to all the protocol ceremonies an exchange of political gifts. Azeri President, Ilham Aliyev, wanted a substantial discussion of security matters, including Karabakh where a new clash had broken the old... MORE
The Caspian Sea: China’s Silk Road Strategy Converges with Damascus
The Caspian region is becoming enmeshed in a web of overlapping political, military, trade and energy interests of countries extending from Asia, to the Middle East, to Russia, to Europe. Given the rising instability of Middle East energy supplies, the Caspian basin has emerged in... MORE
Hawks vs. Doves: Beijing Debates “Core Interests” and Sino-U.S. Relations
An intriguing divergence of views has been exposed within China’s foreign-policy establishment on how to handle the country’s worsening ties with the United States that may highlight a growing dissonance between China’s civilian and military establishments. Sino-American relations have taken a confrontational turn since Washington... MORE
Kyrgyz Officials Poised to Reject OSCE Forces
Kyrgyzstan’s top officials are against the deployment of Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) 52-member Police Advisory Group. The OSCE can still “gracefully” cancel its decision to send the group to Kyrgyzstan, said Security Council Secretary Alik Orozov (www.akipress.kg, August 11). “The situation... MORE
Moscow Seeks Political Allies in Moldova Ahead of Referendum and Elections
The crash of Moldova’s experiment with a parliamentary system of government (EDM, August 6), predictable though it was, could not have occurred at a worse time for the country. When this experiment had first collapsed in 2000, Moldova still had a margin for error at... MORE
Russia Calls for Arms Embargo on Georgia After War’s Second Anniversary
Marking the second anniversary of Russia’s “coercion-to-peace” operation in Georgia, the Russian Chief of the General Staff, Army-General Nikolai Makarov, told the media: “Arms deliveries to Georgia are in full swing. Georgia’s military potential is significantly higher today, compared to August 2008.” Makarov added reproachfully... MORE
Russian Military Power Advancing in the Black Sea-South Caucasus Region
Russia’s deployment of long-range S-300 air defenses in Abkhazia is a sui-generis way to mark the second anniversary, not only of the invasion of Georgia, but also of the armistice agreement that committed Russia to withdrawing its forces. The deployment creates an interdiction capability potentially... MORE
Ukraine Returns Disputed Gas to RosUkrEnergo
There are indications that the Ukrainian government has agreed to return RosUkrEnergo (RUE) the disputed gas, which the Stockholm court ruled belongs to RUE. According to the ruling, Ukraine has to either accept by September 1, or appeal by September 8. The government apparently chose... MORE
Russian Air Force Chief Confirms S-300 Deployment in Abkhazia
The choking smog and smoke from wildfires left Moscow on August 10, but may return at the weekend, as weather forecasters predict a change in the wind direction from the east, where the fires continue to burn. The heat wave that has engulfed most of... MORE
Muhammad Amin: Imam Shamil’s Naib to the Circassians (Part Two)
With the hope of Ottoman assistance, the North Caucasus mountaineers’ freedom from the claws of Russian colonialism seemed closer than ever. After a long wait, Muhammad Amin's wishes finally came true. The local holy war took on an imperial character. On 9 October 1853, five... MORE