Georgia: OSCE Envoy Pushes for Movement in South Ossetia Peace Process
BY JEAN-CHRISTOPHE PEUCH
As saber-rattling continues in the South Caucasus, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) remains committed to finding a negotiated solution to the sovereignty dispute involving Georgia's separatist territory of South Ossetia.

Tajik Public, Press Break Decade Of Silence
BY FARANGIS NAJIBULLAH
The attitudes of many Tajiks appear to have shifted recently, with skyrocketing food prices and energy shortages that left people freezing to death in their homes during the coldest winter in living memory.
A EurasiaNet Partner Post from RFE/RL

Tajik Judge Alleges Official Uzbek Role In Courthouse Bombing
BY BRUCE PANNIER
An accusation of official involvement in cross-border terrorism has inflamed tensions between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, two unevenly matched rivals for regional influence whose entrenched leaders have long jostled for the political high ground.
A EurasiaNet Partner Post from RFE/RL

Uzbekistan: Capital Amnesty Initiative Stalls in the Face of Public Skepticism
Authorities in Uzbekistan are trying to curb the underground economy and bolster confidence in the country's financial sector by offering an amnesty on individual assets. But the people aren't buying into the government's offer.

Medvedev Unveils Little New In Russia's Foreign-Policy Course
When Dmitry Medvedev became Russian president in May, many wondered whether the soft-spoken young lawyer would find ways to set himself apart from his domineering predecessor, Vladimir Putin.
A EurasiaNet Partner Post from RFE/RL

Georgia: Rumored Merger Heightens Concern About Press Freedom
BY MOLLY CORSO
Rumors of a plan to merge Georgia's three main television broadcasters are stoking concerns about the state of media freedom in Georgia.

EURASIANET AUDIO FEATURE

Istanbul's Urban Transformation

Sulukule, a neighborhood of Istanbul, is undergoing "urban transformation." However, critics believe that destroying Sulukule means destroying an important part of the city's historical and cultural legacy. Yigal Schleifer has more on the case in this EurasiaNet audio report.

Listen

British Defense Secretary Reaffirms Transatlantic Solidarity in Afghanistan
BY RICHARD WEITZ
British Secretary of State for Defense Des Browne expressed guarded optimism about Afghanistan’s democratization process during a recent speech in Washington, DC. At the same time, Browne cautioned that the conflict-ravaged nation will take at least a generation to rebuild.

Uzbekistan Continues To Drift Away From Russia, But Not Necessarily Toward the West
For those striving to divine the intentions of the Uzbek government, all signs suggest that Russia's star, from Tashkent's perspective, is in retrograde. But local experts stress that Uzbekistan's recent efforts to downgrade relations with Russia are not necessarily a harbinger of a renewed alliance with the United States and European Union.

Turkey: Free-Speech Issue Remains a Sensitive Subject
BY NICHOLAS BIRCH
Under ordinary circumstances, Mehmet Tursun’s emotional outburst probably would have been overlooked, given that he suspects police of trying to cover up the fact they had shot his son for failing to stop his car for an identity check. But in Turkey, where the free-speech issue remains a touchstone of controversy, devotees of the existing order are not taking lightly anything that seems to threaten the system. As a result, Tursun is facing charges of insulting the judiciary and security police. He could receive a two-year prison sentence if convicted during his trial, due to start July 15.

Russia and Kazakhstan Strive to Put OSCE Democratization Arm in a Sling
BY JEAN-CHRISTOPHE PEUCH
Janez Lenarcic, a Slovenian diplomat, took up his duties at the outset of July as the new head of the Warsaw-based Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the democratization arm of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He is inheriting an institution that is under assault by a group of post-Soviet nations, led by Russia. Another prominent critic is Kazakhstan, which will take the helm of the OSCE in 2010.

Central Asia: Officials Struggle to Contain Outbreaks of Anthrax, Typhoid
A winter of hardship has given way to the summer of pestilence in Central Asia. Contagious diseases, such as anthrax and typhoid, are stoking public health crises in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan.