Stories about Central Asia & Caucasus from August, 2008
Georgia: Dispatches Under Russian Occupation
When Russian forces rolled into the strategic Georgian town of Gori, information on the occupation was scarce. Journalists died during Russian bombing runs in the military campaign leading up Gori's capture, others were shot at, and access to the town was not only limited, but also perilous with South Ossetian, Chechen and Cossack militia hijacking cars and robbing occupants. The posts by the radio station's Goga Aptsiauri are a fascinating account of life under Russian occupation. In his final post made two days ago, Aptsiauri reports that the Russian military had finally left.
Georgia: Goltz on South Ossetia
Writing for Untold Stories, Thomas Goltz offers his opinion on the conflict between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia.
Georgia: Ukrainian Bloggers Action
Peace in Georgia points its readers to an action staged by Ukrainian bloggers. Following reports that Russian troops and South Ossetian irregulars engaged in looting, the bloggers have set up an online shop for looted Georgian goods.
Georgia: Russian Withdrawal
Registan questions the sincerity of the Russian withdrawal of combat troops from Georgia. The blog says that Russia is clearly delighted by the impotence of the U.S. and NATO during the war with Geogia over South Ossetia, but says that Moscow is also unable to find a permanent solution to...
Georgia: Economic Fallout
Regional Reporters [RU] reports on the economic consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia over South Ossetia. The blog says that with the damage to civilian infrastructure in Georgia estimated at $1 billion, experts from the World Bank will visit the country to assess what needs to be done...
Georgia, Russia: Aug. 20 Rally in Poti
Photos from the Aug. 20 “Russia Go Home!” rally in Poti, Georgia – by LJ user pepsikolka.
South Ossetia: Tskhinvali Photos and Reports
On Aug. 21, Columbia Journalism Review published Julia Ioffe's overview of several Russian journalists' blogging from the war in South Ossetia. Featured in her piece are reports by LJ user krig42 (Komsomolskaya Pravda reporter Dmitry Steshin) and LJ user ep-news (Evgeny Poddubny, correspondent for TV Center). Below are a few more blog posts from Russian and North Ossetian journalists, with photos and accounts of what they've seen in the South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali over the past week.
Kyrgyzstan: American Basketball Players to Visit Kyrgyzstan
Elena reports that American basketball players will visit Kyrgyzstan to participate in a series of sporting events.
Kazakhstan: Kazakh perspectives on the Russian-Georgian War
Ben opines on the implications of the new Caucasus conflict for Kazakhstan and says that Kazakhstan’s president Nazarbayev has been the first CIS leader to make a statement on the conflict during a meeting with Putin in Beijing.
Tajikistan: Food crisis
Shannon reports about the striking facts of the aggravating food crisis in Tajikistan.
Kazakhstan: Re housing construction under Soviet Union
Marat posts some statistics about housing construction and the affordability of housing in Kazakhstan in Soviet times.
Kazakhstan: Re international relationships
Marat opines on the state of international affairs and Realpolitik around Kazakhstan.
Afghanistan: The Road War
Joshua Foust examines the dual-use nature of national infrastructure projects in Afghanistan, and wonders how that might affect the counterinsurgency there.
Afghanistan: The Unfortunate Consequence of Militarizing Aid
Joshua Foust sees some of the violent consequences of the U.S. blurring the lines between military and humanitarian aid.
Georgia, Russia: The Names of the Dead
An ongoing initiative (RUS) to compile a list of “those who died in the war of 2008, whose names are found on the web” – by LJ user hunu: “The list is incomplete, of course. […] I've placed the names of the dead on the same page – of civilians...
Russia, Georgia: Oil and War
Window on Eurasia writes about the oil factor in the Russian-Georgian conflict.
Georgia: A War Diary
Natalia Antonova links to a war diary by George Lashkhi, commentator on Georgia’s Channel 1, published at GlobalComment.com.
Georgia, Russia: Feeding Looters and Refugees
A number of Tbilisi residents gathered in front of the Russian embassy Saturday for a protest prank against looting. LJ user oleg-panfilov posted photos of the items left by the protesters for the Russian army; LJ user tony-geo called to Georgians to take care of the refugees' needs first, before getting involved in the "information war."
Kazakhstan: Olympic Blogwatch
The Beijing Olympics have moved political debates in the Kazakh blogosphere to the background. Alim Atenbek is upset with the uniform of the Kazakhstani team [ru]: Officials always want to make a buck on everything, and the Olympiad is not an exclusion. The government allocated 68 milion tenge for 226...
Mongolia: For second time, oil prices rise for Mongolians
RML reports that, as in the rest of the world, the cost of petroleum products in Mongolia, which buys gasoline from from Russia, is rising steadily.
Kazakhstan: British ex-premier’s son served Kazakh oilmen
Zhanna Zhukova reviews allegations that Sir Mark Thatcher, son of the British ex-prime-minister Margaret Thatcher, was hired by a private Kazakh oil company to lobby for its interests and to enhance Kazakhstan’s image abroad.
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