In today's International Herald Tribune, Henry Kissinger delivers a very optimistic assessment of US-Russian relations in the post-Putin era. The king of realpolitik describes the Medvedev period as “a transition from a phase of consolidation to a period of modernization”, one which “may, in retrospect, appear as the beginning of an evolution toward a form […]
The region of Central Asia is home to several functioning and capable radical terrorist groups. Just last May, Interpol rounded up 176 terrorist suspects in Europe from 19 countries, and unfortunately all 5 major CA states were represented. French authorities also announced the arrest of 10 other suspects for financing Islamic terrorist groups, including the […]
Weeks back we discussed the media rollback within the Central Asia states, emphasized in a report by Freedom House, and last week I quickly mentioned a World's Association of Newspapers report that also painted a bleak picture of media rights in CA. Today I have two stories that further showcase the region's not only lack […]
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Here are some short snipets with some reading material to get you through the weekend without fresh, red-hot Central Asian news! Continuing our discussion about CA's blood transfusion and HIV/AIDS problem on June 19, here is a more personal and touching story of the consequences of the region's poorly managed and constructed health care system. […]
World Bank President and former US diplomat Robert B. Zoellick met with President Nazarbayev and the Kazak government this week to discuss several joint World Bank/Kazak projects. The two sides announced plans to jointly finance a $2.5 billion road project to help upgrade the trade routes between Asia, especially China, Russia, and all the way […]
Edward Lucas, the Economist's Eastern Europe correspondent, raises a provocative point in his recent article for Standpoint Magazine. It is certainly true that the worst aspects of the Russian system are often a concentrated form of our own worst shortcomings. Indeed, the West has largely lost the moral authority that it enjoyed during the last […]
It is well-known that the Central Asian region is surrounded by Great and Medium Powers who desire influence in the area. Turkey may not be the largest, richest, or closest power to the region, but its historical and ethnic connections to CA and its people loom large. The Journal of Turkish Weekly has written an […]
Tajikistan, already one of the world's poorest nations, has suffered much this year with a harsh winter, continuing health concerns, and with rising food prices. But the worse could be yet to come as its President Rahmon's rule appears to be showing some cracks and news reports about the country have titles such as ‘Who's […]
How bout some early Monday morning polygamy talk? Radio Free Europe reports that the Kazak parliament has been debating a new draft law that would allow any man who is able to meet his second and third wife's financial needs and obtain their consent can have multiple marriages. The parliament has debated this issue before […]
I'm not the nationalistic sort. I count in my head in English, I think Ukrainians are alright, at heart. Even the Georgians, when they behave. I quietly enjoy the good news from back home and decry the bad, with the equal dose of ironic detachment and self-referential mockery demanded of my generation. Yet I'd just […]
After a couple weeks of poor news regarding Afghani security, there was finally some positive developments as a force of Afghan troops supported by NATO armored vehicles and helicopters appeared to rout Taliban forces who recently took over the Arghandab region surrounding Kandahar. A NATO official called it a ‘fast and effective’ response. However, the […]
Getting health care and health care policy right is a continual battle for developed countries, as one hears cases of doctor and medical mishaps all to frequently, but one thing we have come to count on, at least here in the US, is that the blood transfusions we receive are clean and safe. A new […]
There seems to be new trouble brewing in the Baltics. Fresh on the heels of outlawing Soviet symbolism in what the BBC Russian affairs analyst Steven Eke called “the toughest bans on symbols from the Soviet past adopted in any of the 15 countries that emerged from the USSR”, Lithuania is now apparently in talks […]
–LA Times "Russia produced a sensational performance last night to join Croatia in the last eight of the European Championships.Sweden were shredded" –The Independent Russia outpassed and outclassed Sweden last nightTo have produced a performance this bewitching in a game they simply had to win to progress to the quarter-finals says much for […]