By Fariz Ismailzade (9/10/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: During the past ten years of Heydar Aliyev’s rule in Azerbaijan, the country’s opposition parties have been at bitter odds with one another in spite of domestic as well as international efforts for them to cooperate. This has seriously weakened their struggle against the ruling party. The major opposition parties, Musavat, Azerbaijan National Independence (ANIP), Popular Front and Democratic Parties have more often focused their struggle on each other than on the ruling regime.By Hooman Peimani (9/10/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: As the successor of the Regional Cooperation for Development (RCD) in the 1960s, Iran, Turkey and Pakistan founded the Tehran-based ECO in 1985. However, it became active as a large economic bloc only when the five Central Asian countries, Afghanistan and Azerbaijan joined it in 1992. Within a few months, the ECO members reached an agreement on a 10% tariff reduction among themselves.By Rahimullah Yusufzai (8/27/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: Almost all the governors in Afghanistan’s 32 provinces were self-appointed. A number of them had been governors in the pre-Taliban period and they simply reoccupied their offices when the Taliban regime collapsed in November-December 2001. Others were appointed governors and military commanders by the dominant armed factions in their particular provinces.By Roger N. McDermott & Farkhad Tolipov (8/27/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: The evolving and dynamic security environment in Central Asia has compelled regional states to re-examine their military capacity in the light of these changes, while struggling with the problems stemming from the Soviet legacy. Military reform has essentially revolved around attempts to restructure, re-equip and train modern, mobile, well trained and combat capable armed forces that have the capability of rapid reaction to security challenges from terrorism to guerrilla warfare. Uzbekistan has thus far proven the most successful in putting in place the basic building blocs for military reform and has consequently emerged with the most capable armed forces in the region.The Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst is a biweekly publication of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program, a Joint Transatlantic Research and Policy Center affiliated with the American Foreign Policy Council, Washington DC., and the Institute for Security and Development Policy, Stockholm. For 15 years, the Analyst has brought cutting edge analysis of the region geared toward a practitioner audience.
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