Latest Articles about Central Asia

KYRGYZSTAN, UN DISAGREE OVER REMAINING ANDIJAN REFUGEES

Uzbek human rights activists officially thanked Kyrgyzstan, the UN, and the OSCE for letting refugees from the May riots in Andijan, Uzbekistan, find asylum in a third country. Last week 439 Andijan refugees were sent to Romania en route to host countries that had agreed... MORE

TASHKENT ASKS U.S. TO CLOSE AIR BASE

On July 29, Uzbekistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs delivered a note to the U.S. Embassy in Tashkent, asking the United States to vacate the Karshi-Khanabad air base, withdraw the troops and materiel from Uzbekistan, and terminate the 2001 bilateral agreement within 180 days. The document... MORE

NAZARBAYEV LINES UP HIS MEN AHEAD OF ELECTION CAMPAIGN

On July 8 Rakhat Aliev, the son-in-law of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, was promoted from Kazakhstan's ambassador to Austria to first deputy foreign minister. The move left analysts guessing about the hidden rationale behind this personnel change. First, Aliev, husband of the president's eldest daughter... MORE

MILITANTS IN NORTHERN PAKISTAN ALLEGEDLY INCLUDE KAZAKH NATIONALS

Kazakhstan's security services have repeatedly resorted to the tactic of denying offhand any possible connections between Kazakh nationals and international extremist organizations. This tested rule of the game worked well after terrorists seized a school in Beslan, North Ossetia, last September and after the terrorist... MORE

TASHKENT INSISTS ANDIJAN HAD KYRGYZ LINK

Law-enforcement agencies from Osh district in southern Kyrgyzstan are continuing to investigate the possible involvement of Kyrgyz citizens in the May 10 armed uprising in Andijan, an Uzbek city near the border with Kyrgyzstan. Uzbek authorities have given a list of names of the 33... MORE

UZBEKISTAN’S RELATIONS WITH CHINA WARMING

Uzbekistan's relations with China have been developing at a much more rapid pace since its internal crisis in Andijan in May 2005. That renewed impetus towards building closer ties has been underscored by Chinese Deputy Prime Minister Wu Yi, who visited Uzbekistan for high-level talks... MORE

RUMSFELD EXPECTED IN KYRGYZSTAN TO SETTLE BASE ISSUE

On July 20, Kyrgyzstan's Ministry of Defense announced that U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is expected to arrive on July 25. Rumsfeld will discuss the future of the U.S.-led air base Manas with the new Kyrgyz leadership, in the wake of Moscow- and Beijing-inspired demands... MORE