By empty (9/20/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)

US President George W Bush's attempts to win Russia's support for possible military action against Iraq appear so far to have made little headway. After a meeting at the White House, Russia's foreign and defence ministers gave no indication that Mr Bush had persuaded them to change their minds and back a new United Nations Security Council resolution on Iraq. Mr Bush is pressing for an urgent resolution setting a deadline for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to meet UN demands or face military force.

By empty (9/23/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)

Seventeen people have been officially declared dead, while at least 95 remain missing following a glacier avalanche in North Ossetia on 20 September, according to the head of the republic's government Mikhail Shatalov. An Interior Ministry official noted that it will be difficult to determine the exact number of victims since a large number of them are refugees from South Ossetia and other parts of Georgia who as a rule do not register their place of residence. In an interview with the agency, Shatalov ruled out the possibility that the avalanche had been triggered by terrorists.

By empty (9/23/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)

The Georgian president, Eduard Shevardnadze, has invited Russia to send unarmed military observers to monitor special operations against Chechen rebels in the Pankisi Gorge region. Mr Shevardnadze said Georgian law enforcement agencies were clearing the gorge of what he called criminal elements and gunmen. He said Russian observers would be able to familiarise themselves with the results of the operation.