North Caucasus
New Georgian War Could Destroy Russia
August 12, 2009By Paul Goble A new war with Georgia, something Russian officials and commentators are increasingly talking about, could have the same impact on the Russian Federation that the invasion of Afghanistan had on the USSR, according to Yuliya Latynina,...
U.S. Helsinki Commission Condemns Murder of Natalya Estemirova
July 16, 2009Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission), Co-Chairman Congressman Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL) and Ranking Republican Members Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Congressman...
Militants, Police, Servicemen Die in North Caucasus Violence
July 15, 2009Top Russian officials are claiming that the security situation in the North Caucasus is improving. News reports from the region, however, paint a different picture. President Dmitry Medvedev told Ingushetia's acting president, Rashid Gaisanov, during...
More than 300 Killed in North Caucasus Conflict So Far in 2009
July 06, 2009By Paul Goble Conflicts in Russia’s North Caucasus claimed more than 300 deaths during the first half of 2009, roughly half of whom were identified as militants, just under a third siloviki, and a fifth peaceful civilians, figures that...
Before the Summit, the U.S. Forgives Russia for Invading Georgia
July 02, 2009By Pavel Felgenhauer On Monday July 6, President Barack Obama is expected in Moscow for a summit to discuss nuclear arms control, Iran, Afghanistan the post-Soviet space and other issues. It has been announced that Obama will spend most of July 6 in...
Russia Would Be Better Off Without Non-Russian Areas
July 01, 2009By Paul Goble In recent statements, some of which eerily recall writer Valentin Rasputin’s 1989 proposal that Russia should leave the Soviet Union, some Russian nationalists are now arguing that their nation both as a people and a state would...
Russian Experts Divided on Probability of New War with Georgia
July 01, 2009By Paul Goble As Moscow continues a military exercise in the North Caucasus that it says is designed to prevent conflicts, one leading Russian expert says that the probability of a new war between Russia and Georgia may be as high as 80 percent, while...
- July 01, 2009
David J. Smith Russia Monday launched Kavkaz 2009—the largest ever military exercise in the North Caucasus—possibly the prelude to another assault on Georgia. Meanwhile, rumors of war loom like thunderheads on a hot summer evening. ...
Internet Divides Russia Deeply and in More than One Way
June 28, 2009By Paul Goble Despite reports about the expansion of Internet use in Russia, more than half of that country’s urban residents over age 12 have never gone online, and more than a third have never used a computer, global figures which set Russia...
A New and More Dangerous ‘Red Belt’ Emerges in Russia
June 20, 2009By Paul Goble A new “red belt” is emerging in Russia, the result of the coming together of economic problems, political difficulties between Moscow and the regions, and ethnic challenges to central control, according to a new map of social...
