For over three decades, the US Helsinki Commission has promoted the former Soviet states’ compliance with international human rights norms. Now the commission appears to be expanding the scope of its mission to include economic affairs.
Higher energy prices have helped Russia regain its fiscal footing after the global financial crisis walloped the country in 2008. But some experts say the economic forecast for the Kremlin remains cloudy, as Russian leaders are mired in deficit spending.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has continued to refer to its neighboring countries – the former Soviet republics and, at times, other Eastern European countries formerly under Soviet influences – as the “near abroad.” The term, a literal translation of the Russian blizhnee zarubezh’ye, implies a special relationship with Russia, though the kind of special has varied by speci
Officials in Georgia confirmed November 5 that they have broken up a Russian spy ring involving “dozens” of people, who for years had passed Tbilisi’s military secrets to Moscow, possibly including information about tactical and strategic plans during the 2008 Russia-Georgia war.
Russia’s recent involvement in an anti-drug operation in Afghanistan indicates that the exigencies of the present crisis outweigh the burdens of past actions for Moscow. While Russian leaders appear ready to take Kabul’s feelings into account, the Kremlin is no longer willing to let its past sins keep Russia on the sidelines in Afghanistan.
In a move that could strain Washington’s relationship with Kyrgyzstan, a key Central Asian ally, the Pentagon opted November 3 to award a new fuel-supply contract to a company that is already at the center of a US congressional probe.
Russia is experiencing an unprecedented demographic crisis, according to a prominent American population expert. The country’s dwindling population could make it hard for Moscow to implement its economic and diplomatic agendas in the decades to come.
Given the way things went during his recent visit to Turkmenistan, one has to wonder whether Russian President Dmitry Medvedev looks forward to talks with Turkmen leader Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov as he would a visit to a dentist’s office for a root canal procedure.
Representatives of the Russian energy giant Gazprom confirm that the company is poised to participate in a joint venture to supply fuel to the US-run Manas Transit Center, a key logistics hub for US and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
As politicians in Kyrgyzstan vie to form the next government in Bishkek, it seems the path to power goes through Moscow. Russian leaders, however, appear to be nervous kingmakers. The chief concern in the Kremlin is that Kyrgyzstan’s new constitution, which transforms the Central Asian state into a parliamentary democracy, will produce governmental gridlock.
