Latest Articles about Central Asia
Tajik Opposition Disputes Election Results
While the outcome of Tajikistan’s parliamentary elections on February 28 were largely predictable, the opposition’s efforts to challenge its results are rather unusual. Within days of the vote, the country’s major opposition Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP) announced that it would contest the election results, indirectly... MORE
Bakiyev Promotes Presidential Security Rather Than Tackling Genuine Security Threats
Kyrgyz President, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, is continuing to centralize control over military and security structures to strengthen the protection of his regime. Last year, he disbanded the Security Council and National Guard and appointed his cronies, including his own brother and son, to head key security... MORE
NATO-Kazakhstan Transit Agreement: Unleashing the Potential of Northern Supply Route
NATO and Kazakhstan reached an agreement on January 27, allowing the Alliance to supply non-military goods through Kazakh territory to Afghanistan, substantially enhancing the capacity of the Northern Distribution Network (NDN) carrying supplies from Europe through Russia and Central Asia to Afghanistan. The deal came... MORE
Central Asia’s Energy Wars
Since the winter energy crisis two years ago, when freezing temperatures lasted for several weeks, cooperation dynamics within Central Asia have witnessed rapid change. Upstream Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, which rely on electricity imports during winter, were hit particularly badly as they were unable to supply... MORE
Turkmenistan’s Naval Plans: Promoting its Maritime and Energy Interests
Turkmenistan’s President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has approved a program to create naval forces under the jurisdiction of the defense ministry, and will be deployed at the Turkmenbashi Caspian Sea port by 2015. The approval was announced at a meeting of the National Security Committee on January... MORE
China Seeks to Link Central Asia by Railroad
In the late 1990’s, the Chinese government opened official talks with Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan on the construction of a railroad that would connect all three countries. The idea was born almost simultaneously when the Shanghai Five –the forerunner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) –... MORE
Russian Orthodox Church Prioritizes “Integration” With Kazakhstan
On January 16, the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) Kirill Frolov arrived in Astana for a two-day visit. He attempted to lend a purely religious character to his journey to Kazakhstan, a predominantly Muslim country, and originally planned to visit Almaty. However, thick... MORE
Kyrgyzstan Relaxes Control Over Drug Trafficking
Last October, the Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev disbanded the Drug Control Agency (DCA) responsible for intercepting illicit drugs transiting through Kyrgyzstan from Afghanistan and destined to reach Russia and Europe. Instead, the president assigned the interior ministry to control drug trafficking in the country (www.government.gov.kg,... MORE
The Strategic Implications of the Turkmenistan-China Pipeline Project
On December 14, 2009, China and Turkmenistan formally opened the longest natural gas pipeline, which runs from Turkmenistan through Central Asia to China. This pipeline, financed by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC)—China's largest oil and gas producer and supplier—is the first gas pipeline connecting China... MORE
Kazakhstan Offers to Hold Joint Military Exercises With Turkey
On January 20, the Turkish Ambassador to Kazakhstan, Atilla Gunay, met the Kazakh Defense Minister Adilbek Zhaksybekov in Astana as part of a series of recent meetings to foster bilateral dialogue. Centered on military cooperation, it came three months after Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev visited... MORE