Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgia has stood out as one of the most embattled but also perhaps the most pro-Western country in Europe's eastern borderlands.

Conflict, Crime, and the State in Postcommunist Eurasia explores the relationship between ideologically motivated insurgents, profit-motivated crime, and state institutions in eight conflict zones.

For more than a decade, the United States has been reaching out to the Muslim world, courting Islamic moderates even as it wages war with religious extremists.

Georgia and Azerbaijan can deny Moscow access to the Caspian Sea and Central Asia. But they need U.S. support.