· January, 2006

Stories about Eastern & Central Europe from January, 2006

Azerbaijan: YAMs

  14 January 2006

Carpetblogger says that Azerbaijan's newly denominated currency, the YAM (Yeni (new) Azerbaijan Manat), is causing all kinds of mayhem in the country.

Mongolia: Elephant Keeping

  14 January 2006

Chris Miller reports that Mongol ingenuity is being put to use to keep two elephants from the Russian circus who arrived in Ulaanbaatar early warm. In this case, the ingenuity goes by the name of vodka.

Kazakhstan: Pressure on the Opposition

  14 January 2006

neweurasia reports that, in spite of the president's landslide victory and the opposition being a marginal force, pressure on the president's political opponents has increased since the recent election.

Ukraine: Deserving Respect

  14 January 2006

Scott W. Clark says that Viktor Yushchenko deserves respect for acting within the law and through democratic institutions to restore order to Ukraine's government.

Afghanistan:Turkic People

  13 January 2006

Gardegah says Turkic people in Afghanistan are facing discrimination. These people,Turkmen & Uzbek who are about 12% of population, according to blogger have no place in afghan administration or government. (Persian)

Mongolia: Protest and Uncertainty

  13 January 2006

Protesters have seized the headquarters of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party after its members at the head of government ministries resigned, sending the government into chaos. Chris Miller offers valuable background and explanation, while yan and Registan.net have more on the protests.

Ukraine: Thoughts on Government

  13 January 2006

Scott Clark has additional thoughts on the dismissal of the Ukrainian government, saying it is perhaps not as bad for Yushchenko as it first seemed.

Armenia: Adoptions

  13 January 2006

Oneworld Multimedia reports that, despite new regulations, the number of international adoptions has not decreased.

Russia: Shoot the Birds

  13 January 2006

Nomad Notes reports that Russia's eccentric Vladimir Zhirinovsky has proposed shooting all migratory birds as they fly into the country to prevent bird flu.

Armenia: Bird Flu Update

  12 January 2006

Oneworld Multimedai has an update on bird flu in Armenia. Armenians are following developments closely and the government is preparing measures to deal with the possible threat.

Afghanistan: Ethnic diversity

  11 January 2006

Safrang (“commentary” in old Persian) says it is through accepting the realities of ethnic diversity and building institutions that reflect this that societies find peace and throw away their weapons. More particularly, the Balkan lesson has shown that long-lasting peace can be achieved through devolution of power and decentralization of...

Ukraine: Frustrated

  10 January 2006

Ukraine's government has been sacked now that details of the deal have emerged. Veronica Khokhlova is frustrated with politics in Ukraine.

Turkmenistan: Coverup

  10 January 2006

neweurasia reports that Turkmenistan's government is worried about bird flu, but that it is suppressing information about it.

Kazakhstan: Oiled Inauguration

  10 January 2006

Kazakhstan's president will be inaugurated for a new seven year term soon and plenty of world leaders will be on hand. neweurasia reports that by the end of the festivities, President Nazarbaev will have heard plenty about oil.

About our Eastern & Central Europe coverage

Filip Stojanovski
Filip Stojanovski is the Central Europe editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.

Daria Dergacheva
Daria Dergacheva is the Eastern Europe editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.