 RFE/RL Headlines 02.06.2009 A daily digest of the English-language news and analysis written by the staff of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| News  N. Korea's Kim Moves To Anoint Youngest Son As Heir Analysts believe that Kim Jong-il, whose power base stems from his support for the military, may be using the growing tension to give him greater leverage over power elites at home to nominate his own successor. More The demonstrators carried photographs of politicians and journalists whom they allege were killed by elements within President Nursultan Nazarbaev's administration. More  Some See Silver Lining In GM's Bankruptcy Announcement U.S. car giant General Motors (GM), once the world's largest company, has filed for bankruptcy protection, becoming the biggest industrial bankruptcy in U.S. history. The expected move comes after GM had seen its losses grow following a steep fall in sales in recent years. Although the demise of GM is reverberating painfully through the global auto industry, it might eventually put American automakers on a competitive footing with their Japanese counterparts. More  Azerbaijani Capital's Schools To Be Guarded By State Security Azerbaijani Education Minister Misir Mardanov has said that the state will ensure security at most of the schools and universities in Baku during the next academic year, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports. More  Late Defection Stings Moldova Communists Marian Lupu, who was widely expected to be the party's nominee for prime minister, tells RFE/RL that he will leave the Communists and join the opposition. The announcement comes one day before parliament should meet in a final bid to elect a new president. More  Aliev Hints At Bid For Kazakh Presidency A former son-in-law who recently published a scathing memoir of President Nursultan Nazarbaev's administration has urged the Kazakh public during an RFE/RL online chat to prepare for a planned presidential election in 2012. More "Samarskaya gazeta" head Sergei Kurt-Adzhiev was officially accused by Russian prosecutors of using unlicensed PC programs for employees. More  Eleven Hizb Ut-Tahrir Suspects Charged In Tajikistan Local prosecutors told RFE/RL that those arrested were officially charged with igniting ethnic and racial hatred and attempting to oust the Tajik government. More Two other mosques have been razed in the past month: a mosque in the Yasamal district and the only offshore mosque, on Oily Rocks off the coast of the capital, Baku. More The head of the toxicological department at the Clinical Hospital told RFE/RL that the reported symptoms sounded more like the result of food poisoning than colds. More  Armenia's Opposition To Boycott Yerevan Assembly Opposition Armenian National Congress leader and former President Levon Ter-Petrossian called the May 31 municipal vote "the ugliest election in Armenia's history." More  Tajiks Seek Demining Help From EU Visitors Tajik Foreign Minister Hamrokhon Zarifi told RFE/RL's Tajik Service that he asked a visiting EU delegation for assistance in efforts to demine areas on the Uzbek-Tajik border where Uzbeks planted land mines. More  Access To Yerevan Restricted Ahead Of Election-Day Rally In what critics say has become a pattern before politically charged events, Armenian police set up roadblocks on highways leading to Yerevan and stopped buses, minibuses, and cars from driving to the capital. More  Russian Ombudsman Suggests Beating Children With Soft Belt Youth activists from Russia's opposition Yabloko party protested in St. Petersburg on June 1 against a controversial televised statement by the city's ombudsman about disciplining children. More  The Russian Racket “Novaya gazeta” this week reported the surprising information that on April 13 the son of Rosneft Vice President Mikhail Stavsky (also named Mikhail) was kidnapped. According to some information, the kidnappers are seeking 50 million euros in ransom, while other sources say no demands have been made in the nearly two months since the abduction. More  Party Defection Tips Political Scales The leadership of Moldova's ruling Communist Party faces a crucial split on the eve of its final attempt to elect a president. Former parliament speaker Marian Lupu's decision to leave the party could shift the balance of power toward the opposition and make new legislative elections inevitable. More  Mixed Expectations Ahead Of Speech To Islamic World U.S. President Barack Obama is to give his much-anticipated speech to the Islamic world on June 4 when he visits Cairo, Egypt. Obama has made it clear that the United States wants to reach out to Muslims across the world with "the language of respect." But expectations ahead of his speech to the Islamic world are mixed. More  Georgian Opposition Figure Seeks Middle Ground Georgia's former ambassador to the United Nations, Irakli Alasania, has more recently become the hope of many oppositionists looking for a central leading figure. He speaks to RFE/RL's Georgian Service about his plans for Georgia's opposition and his view of the country's future. More  A Connoisseur's Guide To Chiaroscuro In Caucasus Politics Just as in perusing Rembrandt's canvases you should never overlook the patches that look as though they were infused in dark-brown gravy, it makes sense every now and then to shine candlelight into the dark corners of the Russian state to glean insights into its internal politics. And what could be darker than the North Caucasus? More  Ahmadinejad’s 'Saddest' Day Although Mohammad Khatami has decided against running for the Iranian presidency, it seems that incumbent Mahmud Ahmadinejad is still treating his predecessor as one of his rivals in the race. More  Karrubi's Message Of Change Every candidate in Iran's June 12 presidential election is being given an opportunity to air a 30-minute campaign advertisement. Last night was reformist candidate Mehdi Karrubi's turn. More |
