President Sandu says her resounding victory in the parliamentary vote means an end to the "rule of bandits"

Though an armistice is largely holding, border disputes remain common, and a final peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia is elusive.

The quantity of oil shipped through Azerbaijan, Georgia and on to Turkey and further into the Mediterranean market declined to 1.7 million tonnes in January to June this year.

From the very beginning, Ukraine’s post-Soviet nation-building journey has been defined by competition between rival narratives that have sought to place the country within Russia itself. Conversely, the Western world has never quite managed to make up its mind about Ukraine and has generally adopted a cautious approach.

The government's 20/20 programme called for increasing Ukrgazvydobuvannya's gas production to 20 bcm by 2020, but the goal was not achieved.

Their initial videos raised some eyebrows by focusing on alcohol, other drugs, and sex. Occasionally, they veered into the political realm, yet with a Soviet-style understanding of where the "red lines" were. Light and comedic.

In this personal story, Aybaniz Ismayilova describes her hometown of Minjivan in the Zangelan region of Azerbaijan – a town now cheering its de-occupation, yet a deeply wounded one destroyed during 27 years of occupation.

Havard-educated Sandu won last year’s presidential election by a landslide against Socialist Igor Dodon – widely viewed as Russia’s man in the country sandwiched between Ukraine and Romania.