· July, 2008

Stories about Central Asia & Caucasus from July, 2008

Armenia: Bloggers Attend Presidential Press Conference

  24 July 2008

On 21 July at a news conference held at the presidential palace to mark the 100th day of the new president's term in office, two bloggers were invited to attend alongside 38 journalists. Although the bloggers involved argue that the event was important and unprecedented, not everyone agrees.

Azerbaijan: US Election Conference

  24 July 2008

Michael J. Totten's Middle East Journal reports that it will be visiting Azerbaijan next month for a conference on the U.S. Presidential Election and locally related matters. The blog also solicits questions from its readers which can be put to senior government officials in the country as well as religious...

Caucasus: Tolerance

  24 July 2008

Social Science in the Caucasus comments on its own research into the attitude of citizens of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia towards their neighbors.

Armenia: Divided Blogosphere

  24 July 2008

Following news that two bloggers were allowed to attend a presidential press conference, Unzipped comments on the event and says that the unprecedented event was actually a disservice to the local blogging community. The pro-opposition Nazarian accuses the bloggers of serving the government.

Abkhazia, Georgia: “Home”

  22 July 2008

As everyone seems to be talking about an impending war over Abkhazia, here is a translation of a post by LiveJournal blogger cyxymu, a Georgian who spent his childhood in Abkhazia but now lives in Tbilisi, having become an "internally displaced person" during the hostilities in the early 1990s.

Armenia: Bloggers Attend Presidential Press Conference

  22 July 2008

Real Armenia reports that two local bloggers, Akanumatata_Ser [RU] and Pigh [RU], were allowed to attend a presidential press conference to ask questions collected online. The blog says congratulates the two bloggers and says that bloggers might now be considered equal to local journalists.

Kazakhstan: Astana Anniversary

  21 July 2008

Bloggers discuss how the celebrations of the anniversary of Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan, went. They were so widely advertised and loads of public finance was spent on the tenth anniversary of the capital, that most of the citizens - and bloggers - sighed with relieve when the whole fuss was over.

Georgia: Hacker Attack

The Threat Expert Blog reports that political tensions between Russia and Georgia over the breakaway region of South Ossetia have spilled over into cyberspace. The IT security blog implies that Russian hackers were behind a DOS attack on the website of the Georgian president, Mikhail Saakashvili.

Kazakhstan: Mittal’s Business Still at Risk

  21 July 2008

Adam Kesher reflects on the recent developments around Arcelor Mittal’s enterprise in Kazakhstan against the background of evolving resource nationalism trends in Kazakhstan and consolidation of major industries in hands of the state.

Kazakhstan: New Scandal, Bribes and Politics

  21 July 2008

The Roberts Report reviews the new scandal evolving around Kazakhstan following the Sunday Times article, alleging that KazmunaiGas paid $2 million for vice-president Cheney’s visit to Astana in 2005.

Kazkahstan: Pipeline Blast

  21 July 2008

Patrick Frost reprots that a 20-mile section of a natural gas pipeline, which travels from western Kazakhstan into Russian territory, was shut down late yesterday after an explosion damaged the line.

Afghanistan: Government Blames Pakistan for Terrorism

  21 July 2008

Barnett R. Rubin reports that the government of Afghanistan, chaired by President Hamid Karzai, formally endorsed a statement charging Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate with responsibility for most of the terrorism carried out in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan: Women Shot by Taliban

  21 July 2008

The Rumi reports that two women who had been returning home from shopping in the Kandahar province of Aghanistan, were abducted and shot to death by Taliban insurgents.

About our Central Asia & Caucasus coverage

Nurbek Bekmurzaev
Nurbek Bekmurzaev is the Central Asia editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.

Arzu Geybullayeva
Arzu Geybullayeva is the South Caucasus editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.