JOURNAL: The Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst (cacianalyst.org)

Welcome to the website of the Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst, the biweekly journal of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program Joint Center.

This issue features analytical articles on the attack on the parliament in Grozny, Kazakhstan's bank recovery strategy, separatism through sports in Iranian Azerbaijan, and U.S.-Pakistani relations. In Field Reports, articles on Georgian visa rules for the North Caucasus, freedom of speech in Uzbekistan, the Russian-Kazakh-Belarusan customs union, and the OSCE Minsk Group's visit to the Karabakh conflict zone.

Please download PDF here - the link on the right is temporarily dysfunctional due to technical problems. 25 OCTOBER 2010 BIWEEKLY TURKEY ANALYST This sister publication to the Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst features analysis and coverage on Turkish domestic and foreign policy. Issue no. 17, September 13, is now online, with articles on the state talks with the Kurdish movement, and the developments in Turkey's main opposition party.

Click to download the latest issue in PDF

GROZNY ATTACK INDICATES REVIVAL OF CHECHEN NATIONALIST INSURGENCY
By Murad Batal Al-Shishani (10/27/2010 issue of the CACI Analyst)
On October 19, four Chechen militants stormed the Chechen parliament in Grozny, causing the deaths of six police officers and wounding 17. According to the Russian Interfax news agency, the militants arrived at the parliament by car and forced their way into the parliamentary compound; one of them blew himself up and two were shot dead. This attack is the second serious incident in Chechnya in recent months. In August, militants launched a massive attack on Chechnya’s pro-Russian leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s native village of Tsentoroi. These incidents in Chechnya indicate a split in the North Caucasian insurgency.

IRANIAN AZERBAIJAN: THE BREWING HOTSPOT OF FUTURE SEPARATISM?
By Emil Souleimanov (10/27/2010 issue of the CACI Analyst)
Conventional wisdom has it that Azerbaijanis, the largest ethnic minority in Iran, have historically tended to identify themselves with the idea of Iranian statehood and Shiite religion rather than ethnic nationalism. Yet recent years have shown a growth of their Azerbaijani Turkic self-consciousness which has not least manifested itself in the form of “sport nationalism”. The numerous fans of the Tabriz-based Tractor Sazi football club have become advocates of the ethno-linguistic emancipation of Iranian Azerbaijanis, an emancipation sometimes bordering on separatism and irredentism.

GEORGIA EASES VISA RULES FOR NORTH CAUCASUS RESIDENTS
(By: Eka Janashia - date added 27-10-2010)
ARMENIA EXPECTS FEW OUTCOMES OF MINSK GROUP FIELD MISSION
(By: Haroutiun Khachatrian - date added 27-10-2010)

Events
December 16
Silk Road Forum: "Turkey and NATO: in the Caucasus, Central Asia and Afghanistan," with Vahit Erdem. Click here to download audio for this event.

December 10
Conference "Georgia: Opening new Frontiers", in Cooperation with the America-Georgia Business Council.

November 19
CACI Forum “Dealing with Ethnicities in a Pluralistic Society,” with Eraly Tugzhanov.

November 17
CACI Forum "Prospects for a Torn Turkey: Turkey's Future, and Its Implications for Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the U.S. Interest," with Halil Karaveli, Svante E. Cornell and S. Frederick Starr. Click here to download audio for this event.

FELLOWSHIP: Wider Black Sea Region, Stockholm (mblog.lib.umich.edu)

FELLOWSHIP- Wider Black Sea Region, CACI/SRSP, Stockholm

Wider Black Sea Region Fellowship
Central Asia-Caucasus Institute and Silk Road Studies Program Joint Center Institute for Security and Development Policy, Stockholm

Application deadline: March 1, 2009
Starting date: Spring/Summer, 2009

The Institute for Security and Development Policy is currently accepting applications for a remunerated research stay in Stockholm, Sweden. The Fellowship will be under the auspices of the Institute's Silk Road Studies Program, which constitutes a Joint Center with the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, Johns Hopkins University-SAIS.

The Fellowship will support a research stay of up to 12 months for an outstanding scholar in the early stages of an academic/think tank career on issues relating to security and development in the Wider Black Sea Region (primarily the South Caucasus, Turkey, Ukraine and Moldova). The successful candidate will be expected to participate in the Institute's ongoing research projects on security and energy in the region, including the coordination of these projects, while also
being provided the opportunity to undertake his/her own independent research. A specific work plan will be designed jointly by the Institute and the successful applicant.

The successful candidate should hold a PhD in Social Sciences or Humanities (received no earlier than 2005 and have previous experience in research on the Black Sea region. Fluency in English is a requirement. Knowledge of Turkish, Russian, and other local languages is desirable.

The fellowship award will be competitive in terms of remuneration with post-doctoral positions. While specific arrangements are subject to dialogue with the successful applicant, the Institute will offer travel costs to and from Sweden, accommodation in the Stockholm area and a monthly stipend. The fellowship will be provided subject to
approval of funding.

The application should include the following components:
- A cover letter detailing the applicant's aims for the Fellowship, and a brief abstract of the independent research the applicant proposes to undertake;
- Curriculum vitae (including a comprehensive list of publications);
- Electronic versions of three article-length publications that the applicant considers his/her most important products;
- 2 letters of recommendation.

Deadline for applications is March 1, 2009. Applications should be sent by email to jpopjanevski@isdp.eu

Questions about the program should be directed to Johanna Popjanevski, Deputy Director, at jpopjanevski@isdp.eu, +46-734-150054.