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VOL. 3 (3) - SUMMER 2009
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Note from the Editor-In-Chief
(p.
242-243)
Nasimi Aghayev
Research Papers
Georgia & Russia:
Contradictory Media Coverage of the August War
(pp. 244-260)
by Hans-Georg Heinrich &
Kirill Tanaev
Georgia and the Systemic Impact of the Financial Crisis
(pp. 261-277)
by Marco Giuli
Russia, EU, NATO and the Strengthening of the CSTO in Central Asia
(pp. 278-290)
by Irina Ionela Pop
Turkey: Regional Elections and the Kurdish Question
(pp. 291-306)
by Eddy Ekrem Güzeldere
Poverty Reduction Through Private Sector Development in Georgia:
Policy, Practice and Perspectives
(pp. 307-316)
by Vladimer Papava
Comment
The Merging of Russia’s Regions as Applied Nationality Policy:
A Suggested Rationale
(pp. 317-323)
by Matthew Derrick
Book Review
“China’s Energy Geopolitics: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization
and Central Asia” by Thrassy N. Marketos
(pp. 324-325)
Review by Jan Künzl
Interview
“Widespread discontent in Russia may well lead to further resentment towards
groups of Caucasian origin” (pp. 326-330)
Interview with Katerina
Strani, Researcher, Greek Parliament
Note
From The Editor-In-Chief
(p.
242-243)
Nasimi Aghayev
August 2009 has arrived, and events in
the Caucasus continue to move quickly, with some notable developments to
mention. Negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and
Azerbaijan intensified, which has ramifications for not only the two
countries but also for the attempts to normalise relations between Turkey
and Armenia. Both issues are fraught with complications: despite the initial
activation phase in May and June, the latest Moscow meeting between both
presidents did not manage to produce a framework agreement, much hoped for
and hyped by the Minsk Group in advance. The talks seem to get stuck
primarily on the modalities of an eventual “legally binding expression of
will” on the final legal status of the region and its interim status.
…read more
Research Papers
Georgia &
Russia: Contradictory Media Coverage of the August War
(pp. 244-260)
by Hans-Georg Heinrich &
Kirill Tanaev
This paper reports on an ongoing media
research project that examines the coverage of the Russian-Georgian war in
August 2008, in selected Russian, Georgian, and Western print media. Using
computer-assisted content analysis, it presents evidence that print outlets
display distinct patterns of either balanced reporting or partisan
attitudes, which also vary over time. The effects of possible “spin” in
independent print media have remained marginal and ephemeral. At least as
far as US media are concerned, this could be the result of soul-searching
following the war on Iraq…read more
Georgia and the
Systemic Impact of the Financial Crisis
(pp. 261-277)
by Marco Giuli
This
paper analyses the potential effects that the systemic developments stemming
from the global financial crisis and the August war are likely to have in
Georgia, within a context of hegemonic stability theoretical fundamentals.
According to this perspective, both events have undermined the role of the
US as the sole world hegemon. As a result, the Western strategic priorities
toward the Caucasus are likely to shift, to the detriment of the special
relationship between the Saakashvili administration and the US. To
demonstrate this, the analysis will focus on the case study provided by
energy- and transit-related Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), as the Georgian
political and economic dependence on a geopolitical rent is strongly
connected to them and is likely to disappear in the aftermath of the recent
events…read more
Russia, EU, NATO
and the Strengthening of the CSTO in Central Asia
(pp. 278-290)
by Irina Ionela Pop
Central Asia is a region with great geopolitical and geo-economic
significance. Although the war on terrorism brought the USA, the EU, and
NATO into Central Asia, after the 2005 Andijan event, Russia has been
resurgent in the region. This paper analyses the Russian political-military
strategies toward the Central Asian states, focusing both on bilateral and
multilateral security cooperation. The strengthening of the CSTO (Collective
Security Treaty Organisation), especially through the creation of the Rapid
Reaction Forces, should not be neglected in Europe. According to Russian
officials’ speeches, the CSTO requires equal partnership with NATO in
Afghanistan. This would strengthen the importance of the CSTO in Eurasia and
would limit bilateral dialogue between the former Soviet republics and EU or
NATO…read more
Turkey: Regional
Elections and the Kurdish Question
(pp. 291-306)
by Eddy Ekrem Güzeldere
The results of
Turkey’s regional elections of 29 March 2009 were ambiguous, with no
definite winner in the southeast. The ruling AKP got 38.34% and the Kurdish
DTP, 37.4%. Both are major players in shaping Kurdish policies, and this
result can be interpreted as a call for cooperation in the region, and
between Ankara and the southeastern provinces. Though vital for improving
the economic situation, attracting public and international investments, and
finding common political solutions for the Kurdish question, the AKP has
ignored the DTP, and Ankara continues to neglect the DTP-run municipalities.
During the AKP’s reign, since 2002, important steps toward granting more
rights to Kurds have been undertaken, for example, the 24-hour state channel
TRT 6 in Kurdish, launched on 1 January 2009. However, these policies remain
incomplete since there are no constitutional changes fully guaranteeing the
use of languages other than Turkish in broadcasting and education…read
more
Poverty Reduction Through Private Sector Development in
Georgia:
Policy, Practice and Perspectives
(pp. 307-316)
by Vladimer Papava
This paper
deals with the experience gained in the area of poverty reduction and
private sector development in Georgia. The Economic Development and Poverty
reduction Programme approved by the President of Georgia in 2003 has never
been implemented because the Georgian Government had neither the will nor
the ability to launch its implementation. During the Presidential and
Parliamentary elections in 2008, the Government’s electoral slogan was “An
Integrated Georgia Without Poverty!” Unfortunately, however, even this
slogan did not prepare the grounds for the Government to develop a
more-or-less complete poverty reduction programme. The post-revolution
Government was not always consistent in its endeavours to support private
sector employment programmes. Very often its steps were populist rather than
practical. Poverty reduction may be achieved as a result of co-ordinated
efforts of the government and the private sector: however, this kind of
co-ordination requires the active involvement of trade unions and civil
society…read
more
Comment
The Merging of
Russia’s Regions as Applied Nationality Policy: A
Suggested Rationale
(pp. 317-323)
by Matthew Derrick
The
policy of ukrupnenie (“merging”), which combines multiple federal subjects
of the Russian Federation into unified, enlarged political-territorial
units, is the latest phase in the Kremlin’s bid to restore central authority
over its internal periphery. To date, this policy has reduced the number of
Russia’s regions from 89 to 83, and more mergers are slated for the future.
Vladimir Putin, along with the Russophone press, states that ukrupnenie is
intended to reduce the severe interregional socio-economic inequalities in
Russia by linking poorer regions to wealthier neighbors. This article
refutes this stated rationale. In the process of analyzing mergers that have
already taken place and those that are planned for the future, it is
asserted that ukrupnenie in fact should be viewed as part of Moscow’s
nationality policy, in turn a de facto continuation of Soviet nationality
policy…read more
Book Review
“China’s
Energy Geopolitics: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization and Central Asia” by Thrassy N. Marketos
(pp. 324-325)
Review by Jan Künzl
Since 1993, China has been a net importer of oil. With its unparalleled
economic growth over the past two decades, it developed a huge hunger for
resources to sustain its industrial production. Taking a glance at the
interrelation between the economic growth and the legitimacy of the Chinese
communist regime, it becomes obvious: securing resource flows is a highly
political issue. In his book China’s Energy Geopolitics: The Shanghai
Cooperation Organization and Central Asia, Thrassy N. Marketos places
Beijing’s energy problem in the broader framework of its geopolitical
situation in relation to the Central Eurasian states as well as Russia and
the USA…read
more
Interview
“Widespread discontent in Russia may well lead to further resentment towards
groups of Caucasian origin”
(pp. 326-330)
Interview with Katerina Strani, Researcher, Greek Parliament
How
currently attractive is Russia for job seekers/migrant workers from the
Caucasus (and other ex-Soviet republics)?
According to official statistics,
Russia is the second-largest immigration country after the USA, with over
160,000 migrants annually.
As
the largest, most industrialized country and the most dynamic economy of all
the former soviet states, Russia is certainly more attractive for job
seekers from those areas, at least in principle. In Moscow, for instance,
salaries can be from 5 to 15 times higher than in some CIS countries, with
the exception maybe of Kazakhstan. However, it all depends on three crucial
factors: firstly, the immigrant’s country of origin, secondly, the host city
and thirdly, the job sought and the skills required…read
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