The Destruction of Yukos and the Slowdown of Russian Caspian Projects

October 26 marks the first anniversary of imprisonment of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the owner of Russian largest oil company Yukos, on charges of tax evasion. In retrospect, the highest-level decision to put him behind bars marked a major watershed in Russia’s political trajectory from which it has been sliding towards curtailing democratic institutions and reversing economic reforms. Much attention is currently focused on President Putin’s initiatives for reshaping Russia’s political landscape, but these internal trends inevitably have repercussions for foreign policy, including such a key direction as the Caspian region.