EurasiaNet provides information and analysis about political, economic, environmental and social developments in the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus, as well as in Russia, the Middle East, and Southwest Asia. http://www.eurasianet.org http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:36:04 -0400 Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:35:39 -0400 FeedForAll v2.0 (2.0.1.0) http://www.feedforall.com BY EMIL DANIELYAN Raising a serious obstacle to Russia’s military presence in Armenia, Georgia appears to have closed its airspace to transport planes making vital shipments to Russian troops stationed in the neighboring South Caucasus state. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav101008a.shtml FFCCE8FF-7767-45D3-8BCE-6C21531FE04D Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:35:39 -0400 BY MOLLY CORSO Georgian villagers are slowly returning home in the wake of the Russian army’s withdrawal from checkpoints in the so-called "buffer zone" outside breakaway South Ossetia. While most are happy to be back, the hard reality of rebuilding their lives in time for winter is daunting. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav101008.shtml 19F94B60-49D7-4D9E-9776-2D4197259F4D Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:35:20 -0400 BY LILI DI PUPPO After a two-month stay, Russian troops have pulled out of Georgia, but questions persist about the efficacy of the newly formed European Union monitoring mission that has taken their place. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100908.shtml 8459DB0E-D922-4F16-9EBE-BFEE6C38B094 Thu, 9 Oct 2008 14:14:23 -0400 A EURASIANET PHOTO ESSAY: TEXT BY DEIRDRE TYNAN; PHOTOS BY DAVID TRILLING Bishkek is transforming itself into summit central. In addition to a gathering of Commonwealth of Independent States leaders, members of Eurasian Economic Community will hold a conclave in the Kyrgyz capital on October 10. And on the same day, the heads of Central Asia’s five states will hold a sit-down. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100908a.shtml B7540E77-E384-4CE3-B64A-77FD6BE58735 Thu, 9 Oct 2008 14:14:10 -0400 BY SERGEI BLAGOV Russia is pressing for the creation of a new organization, dubbed the Caspian Economic Cooperation Organization, in an apparent bid to increase its influence over the region’s vast energy resources. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100808a.shtml 67623AFB-02C8-4947-8E22-B79E42E4058A Wed, 8 Oct 2008 15:55:04 -0400 A EURASIANET PHOTO ESSAY: TEXT BY PAUL RIMPLE, PHOTOS BY SOPHIA MIZANTE Abkhazia has hailed Russian recognition of its independence from Georgia as the start of a new era, but for Georgians in the southern Abkhaz region of Gali the campaign to strengthen Abkhazia’s statehood poses a dilemma: whether or not to take Abkhaz citizenship. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100808ff.shtml 823BA4CB-27B9-4A05-9DAF-D5CAB3D593CB Wed, 8 Oct 2008 15:54:43 -0400 BY ANDREW IACOBUCCI Almost one-third of Tajikistan’s 6.7 million inhabitants may not have enough to eat this winter, United Nations experts worry. In an attempt to avert an emergency, the UN has issued a fresh global appeal for assistance. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100708.shtml AD5C02D8-7E57-4E9C-BA3E-1F7CCE631342 Tue, 7 Oct 2008 16:38:30 -0400 BY ARKADY DUBNOV Liberal media outlets in Russia welcomed with relief the news of a late September meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in New York. The press emphasized the mere fact of the meeting - the first one after the Russian-Georgian war in the Caucasus - not its results. They interpreted it as a signal that neither Moscow nor Washington wanted to expand the rift between their countries. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100708a.shtml 8B65FE9A-C0C4-4AFC-B5C4-9D84BF98D2B6 Tue, 7 Oct 2008 16:38:16 -0400 BY MOLLY CORSO Georgian political experts and politicians are applauding the adoption of a resolution by the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe concerning Russia’s August incursion into Georgia. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100708b.shtml B0175D62-38A7-4CF1-B408-B9CBC00069DC Tue, 7 Oct 2008 16:37:51 -0400 BY ARIEL COHEN The geopolitical competition between the United States and Russia in the Caspian Basin seems to be shifting away from Georgia and focusing on Kazakhstan. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in Astana on October 5, sought to downplay the notion that Washington is vying with Moscow for the loyalty of President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s administration. Experts and officials inside Moscow’s Ring Road do not appear to be taking Rice’s comments at face value. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100608a.shtml 084BBD0C-F7F0-48BD-AAA4-A6C322C3870C Mon, 6 Oct 2008 17:08:54 -0400 Local municipalities held town council elections across Kyrgyzstan October 5 with over 60 percent of the country’s 2.5 million registered voters casting ballots. So far intrigue, not results, is the talk of Bishkek. Despite Petrodollars, Irani http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100608bf.shtml F87B01CD-AF9A-4EA4-B0DE-1E11CE492FE1 Mon, 6 Oct 2008 17:09:07 -0400 BY KAMBIZ ARMAN Fearing that Russia would grant Tajikistan’s extradition request, Dodojon Atovullo, the exiled editor-in-chief of a Tajik opposition newspaper and the leader of Vatandor movement, has fled to Paris. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100608.shtml 1C191694-F5B8-4A80-8656-3F2CADA79C5D Mon, 6 Oct 2008 15:17:41 -0400 The Kremlin-controlled energy conglomerate Gazprom is pushing back the start date of the South Stream pipeline by at least two years, according to a report published by the Russian business paper Vedomosti. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100308b.shtml DE0B11B2-E8A3-429E-8003-B5F6165CDCC2 Fri, 3 Oct 2008 15:52:01 -0400 BY SHAHIN ABBASOV This is a tale of two seemingly different countries that is actually one - Azerbaijan. One recently released report, prepared by a leading international financial institution, pronounces Azerbaijan to be one of the world’s most business-friendly nations. Another report, prepared by a leading corruption watchdog group, asserts that graft is deeply entrenched in Azerbaijan and growing worse. The sharply different depiction of business conditions in Azerbaijan is stoking debate in Baku. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100308a.shtml FB775C4A-8475-4C6D-91F5-A3F421977BE5 Fri, 3 Oct 2008 14:33:02 -0400 BY JOANNA LILLIS Kazakhstan, the breadbasket of Central Asia, is recording 2008 grain harvest yields that are considerably lower than last year’s figure. The government, however, is confident that after satisfying domestic needs, the state will still be able to export a large volume of wheat. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100308.shtml AD2E82B2-32F4-444C-AAA4-9A8F141F6686 Fri, 3 Oct 2008 14:32:37 -0400 BY KAMAL NAZER YASIN Given the security concerns surrounding existing pipeline routes connecting the Caspian Basin and Turkey, Iran is trying to fashion itself as a viable energy export alternative. The desire for an energy opening to the West is sufficiently strong that at least some political factions in Tehran seem willing to explore a deal with the United States and European Union concerning Iran’s nuclear program. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100208.shtml CF1BF6B6-5BD6-47CE-8A54-77E76C719C18 Thu, 2 Oct 2008 15:32:42 -0400 BY MOLLY CORSO The US Department of Commerce is working with two private American-Georgian business associations to stage a trade summit in Tbilisi in late October. The initiative is part of a general effort to bolster investor confidence in Georgia. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100208a.shtml E4EF0071-B73A-43E3-BEE4-7BA195F49218 Thu, 2 Oct 2008 17:14:29 -0400 Latvian President Valdis Zatlers began an eight-day visit to Central Asia on October 2, aiming to strengthen political and economic ties between the region and the European Union. http://www.eurasianet.org/wires/100208.shtml 04943D43-B244-4FB8-B67D-58A76871174A Thu, 2 Oct 2008 15:24:54 -0400 A EURASIANET PHOTO ESSAY BY ELIZABETH OWEN September 30 was Independence Day in the disputed territory of Abkhazia, and all the celebratory trappings were on full display: flags, speeches, fireworks and a massive parade. But amid the celebrations of the 15th anniversary of separatist Abkhazia’s defeat of Georgian forces, one unspoken question hung in the air: How independent is the independent Abkhazia? http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100108.shtml 41EC683A-C705-4CAA-A5D8-23F7B1A66EFE Wed, 1 Oct 2008 16:18:40 -0400 BY MARIANNA GRIGORYAN Hovik Abrahamian, a major force within the governing Republican Party of Armenia, has assumed the leadership of the Caucasus country’s parliament. Seeking to distance himself from a controversial past, Abrahamian has pledged to act as a conciliator. But many opposition leaders remain leery of the selection. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav100108a.shtml D62BA525-B941-4076-891B-F96A86BC18CB Wed, 1 Oct 2008 16:18:26 -0400 Pakistan has fired the head of its powerful Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, Lieutenant General Nadeem Taj, in an apparent bid to clean up the military spy agency amid Western claims that it secretly backs the Taliban. A EurasiaNet Partner Post from RFE/RL http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/pp100108.shtml 7D6655D9-3447-450E-924D-B0E3CC3F66C7 Wed, 1 Oct 2008 16:18:04 -0400 BY JOANNA LILLIS With the academic year under way in Kazakhstan, the country’s education system is back in the spotlight. In connection with President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s desire to turn Kazakhstan into one of the world’s 50 most competitive economies, officials want to make rapid progress in raising education standards. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav093008.shtml 4D555A96-0735-4045-8D7B-D20911FA3664 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 16:21:32 -0400 BY SHAHIN ABBASOV Economics may hold the key to breaking the stalemate in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process. Turkish and Azerbaijani officials reportedly are seriously mulling the possibility of Armenian participation in the long-planned Nabucco pipeline project as part of a comprehensive Karabakh peace pact. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav093008a.shtml CE276594-847D-4239-949F-D500FE4FDA72 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 16:21:18 -0400 BY JOSHUA KUCERA Just a few days before the Wall Street bailout plan fizzled, the US Congress approved an aid package for Georgia that could total up to $1 billion over the next two years. The amount of aid would be about 30 times what Georgia has gotten per year from the US government, and three times what the White House proposed to spend on the entire post-Soviet Caucasus and Central Asia over the next year. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav093008b.shtml 632A76FC-EE5E-467E-AD13-9E80D67DCCAC Tue, 30 Sep 2008 16:20:59 -0400 BY EMIL DANIELYAN Turkey is sponsoring additional Armenian-Azerbaijani negotiations on the unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in an apparent effort to hasten the normalization of its historically strained ties with Armenia. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092908.shtml 42581374-7681-417C-8EF5-FAAD4540F760 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 09:49:09 -0400 As another winter of discontent looms in Tajikistan, President Imomali Rahmon’s administration is feeling heat. In response, embattled Tajik officials are lashing out against perceived enemies. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092908a.shtml F024E97F-B102-4196-96F8-02DFB68025B0 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 09:48:43 -0400 Hundreds of government officials, members of civil society groups, and other experts from the member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Europe are meeting in Warsaw for two weeks starting on September 29. The Human Dimension Implementation Meeting (HDIM) offers an extended opportunity to work together for democracy and human rights. RFE/RL correspondent Charles Recknagel spoke with the head of the U.S. delegation to the summit, Ambassador W. Robert Pearson, about his expectations for the meeting. A EurasiaNet Partner Post from RFE/RL http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/pp092908.shtml 7B2554A7-05F4-4BF9-8CBB-5A47517D5430 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 09:48:20 -0400 BY JEAN-CHRISTOPHE PEUCH Confronted with widespread international criticism over its actions in Georgia, Russia is eager to show that it can still serve as a peace broker the post-Soviet area. A primary Kremlin aim appears to be checking any further advance of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092608.shtml 734FAAC6-9874-4C59-AC5E-026306E7BF33 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 17:56:07 -0400 A delegation from Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) is blaming both Russia and Georgia for an armed conflict in August. PACE officials are also calling for an international probe into the causes of the brief war. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092608b.shtml C30A977C-D005-4106-9141-08F85D78CDD8 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 17:55:49 -0400 BY STEPHEN BLANK In the aftermath of Russia’s incursion into Georgia, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev articulated a five-point program for Russian foreign policy, the central element of which is Moscow’s supposed right to intervene in other states at will in order to defend Russian citizens abroad. This idea is inherently dangerous for not just regional, but global stability. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092608a.shtml 3702D959-6E6A-4003-8470-A5EFA52B07C9 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 17:55:32 -0400 Uzbek authorities have stepped up surveillance of mosques and tightened control on religious activity since the start of the holy month of Ramadan. Although designed to keep a lid on Islamic radicalism, the government measures are causing friction with mainstream believers. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092508.shtml 4742CEDC-5B98-4775-92B4-3C54F838CFA6 Thu, 25 Sep 2008 17:57:58 -0400 A EURASIANET COMMENTARY BY MARK N. KATZ Linkage is the time honored practice of getting another party’s cooperation on an issue of importance to oneself by promising to help or threatening to hinder that other party on another issue of importance to it. Moscow is clearly trying to get American and European acquiescence (if not approval) for the gains it has made in Georgia by threatening to increase Russian cooperation with Iran if this is not forthcoming. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092408a.shtml B7953310-7263-4333-8C7B-2A396BAF6524 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:12:34 -0400 BY JOSHUA KUCERA Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, seeking to retain the backing of the United States, is vowing to carry out a "second Rose Revolution" that would hasten the democratization pace in the Caucasus country. While the Bush administration continues to offer strong support for the Georgian leader, some influential members of the US Congress have started to question Washington’s policy stance toward Georgia. http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092508a.shtml D0CCC175-9BC3-479B-8B4D-68E16EA2A4E5 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:12:21 -0400 BY MINA MURADOVA Azerbaijan’s 4.8 million registered voters may have a choice of up to seven candidates in the upcoming October 15 presidential election. For many, however, the major question is not for whom to vote, but why? http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav092408.shtml 8958C515-7DCC-4BE3-978A-1EF6D9F3593B Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:12:53 -0400