Size of text
| Is the West helping to thaw or re-ignite a "frozen conflict"? |
| HITS: 2963 | 19-02-2008, 14:15 | Comments: (0) | Categories: Moldova , PR and human rights, Analyzing | |
|
|
| Read more |
Cameron, campaign, commissions, communism, crisis, election, elections, Euthanasia, George Bush, government, human rights, immigration, independence, KFOR, Kosovo, labour party, Lukashenko, media, NATO, NGO, NGO activists, parliament, parliamentary elections, parties, party, policy, politics, polling stations, polls, post-communism, president, prime minister, referendum, refugees, revolution, Saakashvili, senate, Shevardnadze, society, voting
Show all tags
|
Across the former Soviet Union, the status of four unrecognised states with de facto independence has remained unsolved since 1991. Three of these so-called “frozen conflicts” – Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia and South Ossetia – are in the Caucasus, close to oil and gas pipelines. Each has a friendly neighbour – Armenia for Karabakh, Russia for Abkhazia and South Ossetia – which inhibits attack by the nominal sovereign, Azerbaijan or Georgia. The fourth unrecognised state, Transnistria, is sandwiched between its sovereign claimant Moldova and Ukraine. Since March, 2006, Moldova and Ukraine, backed by the EU and United States have tried to bring rebel Transnistria to its knees with a de facto blockade. Western analysts, who have backed secessionist movements in the Balkans have demanded the enforcement of Moldova’s sovereignty - until now.
