By Marat Yermukanov (3/21/2007 issue of the CACI Analyst)

The Georgian President’s brief stopover in Astana on his way to Japan on March 5 could hardly be called an epoch-making visit. Even observers familiar with Mikheil Saakashvili’s distaste for ceremonial pompousness were puzzled by the low profile he upheld in his talks with his Kazakh counterpart and with journalists, dropping casual jokes about tourism and investment. But in Astana, everybody knows that the current state of Georgian economy, especially in the energy sector, is anything but a joking matter.

By Nurshat Ababakirov (3/21/2007 issue of the CACI Analyst)

In his address on 17 March in Aksy, President Bakiev called for deterring the efforts of some politicians to “politicize” the Aksy events. But to the question of seemingly dissatisfied people as to why the involved officials are still not punished, the president once again mentioned that he is not a “czar” to overcome the constitutional framework. Nevertheless, in order to placate the strong demand of the grassroots, the president had to sack the Prosecutor General, Kambaraly Kongantiev, on 19 March, who was believed to have failed to expose the officials that gave the orders to shoot at civilians.

By Nurshat Ababakirov (3/7/2007 issue of the CACI Analyst)

“I had to pass through parliament!” Daniyar Usenov according to Kulov justified himself before President Kurmanbek Bakiev. Kulov’s February 28 statement to Delo N newspaper also mentions how the first deputy prime minister allegedly complained to President Bakiev that his current position as a “manager” costs him much more than his actual $300 salary.

On the first days following the announcement, the first deputy prime minister seemed slow to respond to such loud and rigorous accusations, adding to the impression that he had been seeking to coordinate with the president and the pro-Bakiev parliamentarians.