Latest Articles about Central Asia
WILL TURKMEN GAS GO SOUTH AS WELL AS WEST?
Most commentary on Turkmenistan’s energy future has focused on the possibility of its being able to sell gas directly to Europe instead of having to go through Russia to do so. Thus, international attention has been focused on the projected Nabucco or trans-Caspian pipeline that... MORE
BAKIYEV SUPPRESSES PROTESTS AGAINST BORDER CONCESSIONS TO KAZAKHSTAN
On April 24 Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek Bakiyev signed a decree ceding 620 hectares of Kyrgyzstan's northeastern territory to Kazakhstan. The process has been unfolding gradually since 2001, but Bakiyev was only recently able to pass the decree in parliament. What began as a deal between... MORE
TURKMENISTAN DOUBLES NATURAL GAS PRICES TO IRAN
Nearly four months after a pricing dispute shut down Turkmen natural gas deliveries to Iran, the pipelines are again open. The bad news for Tehran is that the new price per thousand cubic meters (tcm) is nearly twice what it paid Ashgabat in 2007. On... MORE
KARIMOV, BAKIYEV REACT DIFFERENTLY TO NAZARBAYEV’S CENTRAL ASIA UNION
On April 22 Uzbek President Islam Karimov visited Astana to meet with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Both leaders agreed to boost bilateral economic cooperation by creating a common trade area at the borders. Karimov's harsh criticism of Nazarbayev's Central Asia Union (CAU), however, raised eyebrows... MORE
MOSCOW SEEKS TO ENGAGE MONGOLIA ECONOMICALLY
Moscow has renewed efforts to prop up economic ties with its closest Cold War era ally, Mongolia. The two neighboring nations appear, however, to remain divided by a variety of irritants. At a meeting in Moscow with Mongolian Prime Minister Sanjaa Bayar earlier in April,... MORE
KYRGYZ PARLIAMENT VOTES TO PRIVATIZE KEY ECONOMIC SITES
On April 18 the Kyrgyz parliament voted to increase the government’s right to privatize public economic sites. The divide in the parliament on this legislative act was obvious: President Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s party Ak Zhol voted in favor of privatization, while two opposition parties, the Kyrgyz... MORE
CSTO LEADER MEETS WITH TAJIK OFFICIALS TO DISCUSS SECURITY, AFGHANISTAN
On April 14 Secretary-General Nikolay Bordyuzha of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) arrived in Dushanbe for talks with security and law enforcement officials in Tajikistan. His three-day working visit began with a meeting with Defense Minister Sherali Khayrulloyev, Secretary Amirqul Azimov of the Tajik... MORE
MONGOLIAN PRIME MINISTER MEETS WITH RUSSIANS; DISCUSSES FOOD SHORTAGES
While the Mongolian People’s Republic shed its socialist Communist political straitjacket in 1990, the Mongolian “ulus” (nation) has remained divided by geography as a part of the new “Great Game,” with independent Mongolia remaining heavily under Russian influence, while the Peoples Republic of China retains... MORE
KAZAKHSTAN AND MONGOLIA BROADEN RELATIONS
Since 1991 Kazakhstan has become one of the world’s rising petro-states. If current development plans are implemented, Kazakhstan’s current 1.3 million barrels per day (BPD) output will rise to 2.7 million by 2020. While the most of Kazakhstan’s output is currently shipped to the world... MORE
EU IS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT COOPERATION WITH TURKMENISTAN
On April 9 and 10 the EU Troika met with Turkmen officials in Ashgabat to discuss potential cooperation in the energy sector. The meeting, according to Troika representatives, had a successful outcome, with Turkmenistan agreeing to export natural gas to Europe through the Nabco pipeline.... MORE