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481. North Caucasus Weekly - Volume X, Issue 5

Publication Date:
02-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
North Caucasus Weekly (formerly Chechnya Weekly), The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
In this issue: New York Times Provides Fresh Details of Accusations against Kadyrov Kadyrov Calls Budanov a "Schizophrenic" and "Murderer" Kadyrov's Spokesman Defends Zakaev Militants and Police Official Killed in Dagestan as Ethnic Tensions Rise Rebels in Ingushetia Target Police and Servicemen Briefs Kadyrov Courts Akhmed ZakaevBy Mairbek Vatchagaev Salafi-Jihadis Turn Their Attention to the North CaucasusBy Murad Batal al-Shishani.
Topic:
Security and Ethnic Conflict
Political Geography:
Russia

482. North Caucasus - Volume X, Issue 8

Publication Date:
02-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
North Caucasus Weekly (formerly Chechnya Weekly), The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
In this issue: Chechen-Ingush Deportation Anniversary Marked Five Militants Killed in Dagestan Operation Rebels Attack Servicemen, Police in Chechnya Briefs Wave of Unrests and Counter-Terrorist Operations Sweep the North CaucasusBy Mairbek Vatchagaev.
Topic:
Security and Ethnic Conflict
Political Geography:
Russia

483. The Georgia Crisis: Implications for the Partnership for Peace

Author:
Graeme P. Herd and Daniel A. Flesch
Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Connections
Institution:
Partnership for Peace Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes
Abstract:
On 7 August 2008, Georgia attacked Tskhinvali, the capital city of South Ossetia, with heavy artillery, rocket launchers, and ground troops in an attempt to take control of the breakaway republic, which contained bases of both Russian and OSCE peacekeepers. Russia, claiming to be acting under the mandate of peace enforcement, pushed Georgia out of both South Ossetia and another breakaway Georgian republic, Abkhazia, and deep into Georgian territory. This created the potential for regime change, as the Russian Army appeared to be moving on Tbilisi with the intent of overthrowing Georgia's democratically elected government. On 8 August 2008, Russian military forces crossed the Georgian border into South Ossetia and Abkhazia in a successful effort to repulse Georgian troops. The immediate casus belli for Russia was genocide, with claims that “over two thousand” South Ossetians had been killed by Georgian troops, along with the shooting of ten Russian peacekeepers in South Ossetia, which necessitated a humanitarian and peace enforcement operation. The Russian advance included ground troops, tanks and armored personnel carriers, and air and sea operations, combined with coordinated kinetic and cyber attacks. Russian forces also crossed into Abkhazia in defense of their compatriots – 70 percent of the Abkhaz population of 220,000 are Russian passport holders, and 90 percent of the South Ossetian population of 70,000 are also Russian citizens.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, International Affairs, and Population
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Georgia, and South Ossetia

484. Making Anti-Corruption Regulation Effective for the Private Sector

Publication Date:
09-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Transparency International
Abstract:
A comprehensive regulatory framework for the private sector is a prerequisite for a transparent, honest and just society: where regulation is weak, corruption risks grow strong. As the primary rule makers and enforcers, governments have a responsibility to ensure the effective regulation of markets, protection of citizens and enforcement of laws. Ultimately, an inadequate or unstable regulatory framework for the private sector — without the will, power or resources to enforce legislation — facilitates the marginalisation of stakeholder rights, distortion of markets and negligent or corrupt practices.
Topic:
Security, Corruption, Genocide, Markets, and Law
Political Geography:
Russia, United Kingdom, and Brazil

485. North Caucasus Weekly - Volume X, Issue 9

Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
North Caucasus Weekly (formerly Chechnya Weekly), The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
In this issue: Six Policemen Killed in Ingushetia Bombing Kadyrov Faces Fresh Accusations of Ordering Hits Abroad Kadyrov Defends Honor Killings Kadyrov Again Invited Zakaev to Return to Chechnya Briefs Dokka Umarov Suffers Setback in Turkey By Mairbek Vatchagaev.
Topic:
Security and Ethnic Conflict
Political Geography:
Russia and Turkey

486. A New Direction for U.S. Policy in the Caspian Region

Author:
Martha Brill Olcott
Publication Date:
02-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:
With Washington's influence on the Caspian region at its lowest ebb in many years, the Obama administration could reverse this trend with a new approach that accepts Russia's presence and China's interest as historical and geographical givens and emphasizes short- and medium-term problem solving in multilateral and bilateral settings instead of long-term political and economic transformations. The United States can accomplish more in the Caspian region by focusing on military reform and building security capacity than on forming military alliances. The United States should switch from a multiple pipeline strategy to a policy that advances competition by promoting market pricing for energy producers, consumers, and transit states. The United States could facilitate the introduction of renewable sources of energy as a stimulus to economic recovery and a source of enhanced social security. The United States should develop a nuanced strategy that encourages political development through social and educational programs and local capacity building. The Obama administration should name a high-level official as a presidential envoy to this region.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, Development, Economics, and Nuclear Weapons
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, China, Washington, and Central Asia

487. North Caucasus Weekly - Volume X, Issue 11

Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
North Caucasus Weekly (formerly Chechnya Weekly), The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
In this issue: Four Militants Killed in Kabardino-Balkaria Militants and Security Forces Battle in Dagestan General Asks Chechens to Inform on Rebels Briefs Ingush Insurgency Approaches Major CrossroadsBy Mairbek Vatchagaev Exclusive Interview with Anzor Astemirov, March 2009By Fatima Tlisova.
Topic:
Security and Ethnic Conflict
Political Geography:
Russia

488. Resolving Post-Soviet "Frozen Conflicts": Is Regional Integration Helpful?

Author:
Mykola Kapitonenko
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Caucasian Review of International Affairs
Institution:
The Caucasian Review of International Affairs
Abstract:
Regional conflicts are arguably the most disturbing heritage of the USSR. Ironically, they are gradually becoming cornerstones for a renewed foreign policy of Russia. That can have long-lasting consequences: from disrupting regional stability to a massive geopolitical change in a strategically important Black Sea/Caspian region. Regional conflicts are also penetrating the agenda of world politics. The end of pure Westphalian principles of the world order emancipated numerous unprecedented challenges, strengthened by nationalism, separatism, and non-conventional warfare. That created a challenge for political science and conflict studies, a challenge which could be compared and contrasted to the problems once posed by the Cold War. These challenges require a scientific inquiry into the nature of internal conflicts, particularly of the "frozen" ones, as well as the impact they have upon regional security arrangements and methods of conflict management. Recent developments in the Caucasus are a continuation of old problems, which are likely to remain for an undetermined period of time. Coping with those problems is one of the most important tasks not only for the foreign policies of states involved, but also for the whole system of regional security.
Topic:
Security, Cold War, and Politics
Political Geography:
Russia and Caucasus

489. NATO at 60: A Hollow Alliance

Author:
Ted Galen Carpenter
Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Cato Institute
Abstract:
As the North Atlantic Treaty Organization celebrates its 60th birthday, there are mounting signs of trouble within the alliance and reasons to doubt the organization's relevance regarding the foreign policy challenges of the 21st century. Several developments contribute to those doubts. Although NATO has added numerous new members during the past decade, most of them possess minuscule military capabilities. Some of them also have murky political systems and contentious relations with neighboring states, including (and most troubling) a nuclear-armed Russia. Thus, NATO's new members are weak, vulnerable, and provocative—an especially dangerous combination for the United States in its role as NATO's leader.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, NATO, International Cooperation, and International Security
Political Geography:
Russia and North Atlantic

490. The Key to Kiev: Ukraine's Security Means Europe's Stability

Author:
Adrian Karatnycky and Alexander J. Motyl
Publication Date:
05-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Foreign Affairs
Institution:
Council on Foreign Relations
Abstract:
The recent deterioration in relations between Russia and Ukraine should be of great concern to the West, because Ukraine's security is critical to Europe's stability. Ukraine must be placed back on the policy agenda as a player in its own right.
Topic:
Security and Economics
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Ukraine