Kazakhstan has been living it up the last decade, maintaining nearly 10% growth due to high LNG and oil prices. The government built an insane new capital, as seen above, while migrants from the other Central Asian countries came to work in Kazakhstan. Now the economy has been hit hard hard by the worldwide drop […]
Turkmenistan has agreed to allow non-lethal NATO supplies to be transported through its air space. This is a big deal because Turkmenistan is officially neutral and has been very cautious about getting mixed up into any other state’s affairs. The Turkmen president, Berdymukhamedov, announced the new agreements on his visit to Tashkent February 24-25th. According […]
The New York Times has reported that the Obama administration has widened the scope of missile attacks inside of Pakistan. The report details two specific drone attacks inside of Pakistani territory that directly targeted Baitullah Mehsud, an insurgent leader who mainly targets Pakistani forces, not the US/NATO/Afghan forces across the border, and his camps. The […]
On the one hand, the signs aren’t so good for the ex-oligarch. A new trial begun yesterday could see the former Yukos tycoon convicted for 15 additional years if found guilty of charges that are, according to his lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, “even more fraudulent than the first set.” So why did Medvedev allegedly fly the […]
The Guardian newspaper has the best overview of US Special Representative Richard Holbrooke’s ‘listening tour’ of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Holbrooke spent most of his time in Pakistan and met with government leaders, military leaders, opposition members, and some elements of civil society. He visited Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, the insurgent targeted and vital transportation hub, Khyber […]
In more good news about Tajikistan and Uzbekistan relations, 85% of their border has now been agreed upon by both sides. Only four points of contention remain, but this is still progress. I cannot guess why they decided to finally deal with this, but alls well that ends well. In other good news, electricity rationing […]
In any good horror movie, the psychopathic killer is decidedly ordinary, even a little boring. Entering a sleepy hamlet quietly, he slaughters his unsuspecting victims without fanfare, and is unmasked all too late. Similarly, the recent appointment of an obscure Stanford academic to Obama’s foreign policy team garnered only a few lines in a handful […]
Just weeks after the Afghan Election Commission, United Nations, and the US government stated that they believe it best to delay the presidential elections until August, President Karzai issued a decree on Saturday ordering that all elections be held in accordance with the Constitution, that is, this April or May. The main reasons given the […]
Modern feminists, take note. A woman can achieve anything in Russia, but it helps to be standing next to a big man. That at least seems to be the lesson from two recent rankings of the country’s leading ladies. Topping the list at the influential business mag ‘Finans’ is Elena Baturina, owner of the Inteko conglomerate […]
Kazakhstan has disconnected from Central Asia’s power grid, arguing that some parts of the country were experiencing blackouts due to Tajikistan using too much power. Unfortunately, neighboring Kyrgyzstan is being affected and is limiting electricity use in the peak evening hours, including in the capital. Kazakhstan says it will be directing energy use to domestic […]
EurasiaNet published an informative piece on the complicated relationships between state media outlets and regional cooperation. The recent summit between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan on water seemed like it yielded tangible results, but while in Tashkent, Turkmenistan’s president, Gurbangly Berdymukhamedov, stated that any water projects should be subject to international feasibility studies. Tajik media interpreted this […]
After Russia forced Kyrgyzstan’s hand in closing Manas Airbase, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), formed in 2002, has increased its role by creating a Rapid Reaction Force. The CSTO includes the four central asian states except for Turkmenistan (which is officially neutral), Russia, Belarus and Armenia. Its stated purpose is preserving its member states […]
A few items… 1. Eurasianet and the FPA’s Global Food Crisis blog have once again highlighted the plight of hunger in the Afghan state. The Eurasianet report states that around 40,000 Afghan citizens die every year because of hunger, way overshadowing those that are killed by violent conflict, though the two are connected in many […]
Pakistani intelligence officials briefed the US military yesterday and though they agreed that American drone attacks were degrading Al Qaeda’s leaders and more importantly their ability to foment far reaching violence, that the radical group, partnered with the Taliban, was increasingly destabilizing the Pakistani state. As much as the US desires a stable (and free?) […]
Adeeb Khalid, a professor of history at Carleton College and Central Asian expert, wrote ‘Islam after Communism‘ in an attempt to educate those who view Central Asian Muslims through the prism of Muslims in the Middle East, in effect, ignoring their own history and societal changes and make up. Khalid effectively hammers down the point […]