A free speech debate is flaring in Armenia, touched off by an official investigation into a collection of short stories that casts the Armenian army in unflattering light.
Hunger, unheated barracks, beatings and regular outbreaks of disease: it could be life in a penal colony. But in this case, it describes the existence of a fresh military conscript in Tajikistan.
Azerbaijan may boast a billion-dollar-plus annual defense budget and a professed commitment to military reforms, but the deaths of soldiers in non-combat-related incidents are raising questions about the government’s commitment to remaking the country’s armed forces.
Turkish government leaders have made reducing the military’s role in politics one of their top domestic priorities. But there is one area where the politicians appear reluctant to confront the generals – providing draft exemptions for conscientious objectors.
