RFE/RL Caucasus Report
31.05.2013
A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about the countries of the South Caucasus and Russia's North Caucasus region.
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A Chechen Snake In The Grass
Chechen Republic head Ramzan Kadyrov is in high dudgeon following the screening by a Russian TV channel of footage showing employees of the Grozny municipal department responsible for parks carrying mown grass wrapped in the Russian national flag. More 
Belgian Post Complains Over Spin On Aliyev Vanity Stamp
Belgium's postal service says media reports in Azerbaijan about what was essentially a vanity stamp of the late President Heydar Aliyev gave the wrong impression. More 
Chechen Leader Stands Up For His 'Brother' Surkov
Chechen Republic head Ramzan Kadyrov is not a man to do things by halves, as his lavish reception in Grozny on May 27 for the editors of Russia’s most prestigious newspapers demonstrated yet again. More 
Sex, Drugs, And Dissent: The Return Of A 'Classic Technology'
The U.S.-based NGO Human Rights Watch has slammed Azerbaijan for arresting political opponents on spurious drugs charges in the run-up to the country’s October presidential election. But it seems Baku is not alone in apparently using such tactics to muzzle dissent. More Georgia's foreign minister has expressed concern over the installation by Russian troops of barbed-wire fencing along the administrative boundary of Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia. More 
Armenian Opposition Takes Stock After Election Defeats
Yet notwithstanding the perception that "achieving regime change by means of elections is impossible in Armenia," the political landscape is very different now from early 2012 and is likely to continue to change. One major political party has strengthened its position, while support for two opposition parliamentary parties has dwindled. More Workers from Chechnya who've been constructing sites for the Sochi 2014 Olympics claim there's no supervision, materials are a mess, and no one's paying the salaries that they're owed. (Video by RFE/RL's Russian Service) More 
Cat Fight! Kadyrov Takes On Moscow Socialite In Feline Beauty Contest
A photo posted on May 23 of the Chechen authoritarian leader Ramzan Kadyrov cuddling up with three kittens in his Grozny palace has sparked a new battle with a top Moscow socialite. More |
