This Strategic Conflict Assessment study (SCA), undertaken by Anton Ivanov (2009), contains an assessment of the current conflict and cooperation dynamics in the North Caucasus with a focus on developments in the region that have taken place since the previous Strategic Reconstruction and Development Assessment (SRDA) study conducted in 2005 and updated in 2006. The most important characteristic of the current situation in the North Caucasus is the sharp contrast between visible stability on the sociopolitical surface and the fierce underlying struggle between actors competing for power, economic gain, and social influence outside of the domain of public politics.