By empty (8/10/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

The United Nations has suspended road travel in parts of southern Afghanistan following a spate of attacks on Afghan aid workers and policemen by unidentified assailants. A resurgent Taleban movement has been attacking government targets and those connected with foreign aid organizations in the south-east of the country in recent months. The worsening situation in the south comes as NATO is about to take over leadership of the international security force in the capital on Monday.

By empty (8/11/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

South Ossetian has reaffirmed its interest in forging military ties with the breakaway republic of Abkhazia. \"Last year, Abkhazia and South Ossetia agreed on staging joint anti-terrorist exercises and these plans are still valid,\" South Ossetian Prime Minister Gerasim Khugayev told Interfax. The two unrecognized republics \"need allies to protect\" their territories, Khugayev noted.

By empty (8/12/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

\"The Russian company has all the guarantees that its business in Georgia will be profitable,\" the President Shevardnadze said on August 11 while commenting on the entry of Russian Unified Energy System (UES) to the Georgian energy market. Under a contract between the US company AES and UES, the Russian company acquired 75% of shares of AES-Telasi electricity distribution network, two 600 megawatt power plants of AES-Mtkvari, power lines to transit electricity to Turkey and Armenia, as well as rights to manage Khrami I and II power plants. The deal caused protest of the opposition political parties, which fear that the monopolization of the Georgian energy sector by the Russian state-owned company might lead to mounting political pressure on Georgia.