The Times Of Central Asia | Eurasian Publication & News Online

Along with Nicholas Spykman, Sir Halford Mackinder is one of the most pre-eminent thinkers in the field of geopolitics. Whilst today geopolitics is a term used interchangeably with “world affairs,” “international relations,” and “foreign policy,” Spykman and Mackinder used the phrase to describe the narrow academic study of how geography...

Podcast

Pannier and Hillard’s Spotlight on Central Asia: New Episode Coming Sunday

Mining

Astana Mining Congress to Highlight Kazakhstan’s Role in Critical Minerals

The 16th International Mining and Metallurgy Congress and Exhibition, Astana Mining & Metallurgy (AMM) 2026, will take place on June 11-12 at the Hilton Astana, bringing together mining and metals companies, investors, technology suppliers, government officials, and industry experts. The forum comes as Kazakhstan is trying to strengthen its position...

State Visit

Erdoğan Visit Puts Trade, Transit, and Turkic Economic Integration at Center of Kazakhstan’s OTS Push

Afghanistan

Opinion: The Southern Dimension of the Middle Corridor – Afghanistan’s Role in Eurasia’s New Logistics Landscape

TCA Interviews

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister on Kazakhstan, Trade, and War

Demographics

Kazakhstan’s Demographic Shift Puts Labor Market Under Strain

Bishkek’s Backlash, Russia’s New Red Lines, and a Caspian in Crisis

00:00 / 00:00

Sunkar Podcast

Uzbekistan’s Sindarov Makes Breakthrough in World Chess

00:00 / 00:00

Opinions

Opinion: UK’s C6 Engagement and the Opportunity for British Geostrategic Renewal

Matthew Davies

Opinion: The Southern Dimension of the Middle Corridor – Afghanistan’s Role in Eurasia’s New Logistics Landscape

Timur Serikuly

Opinion: Kazakhstan, Oil, the Iran War and Dutch Disease

Charles McLean

Opinion: The U.S. Still Doesn’t Know Where Central Asia Belongs

Ken Moriyasu

Opinion: Hormuz Crisis Pushes Afghanistan Aid Routes Toward Central Asia

Aidar Borangaziyev

Opinion: The Regional Ecological Summit and the Making of a Central Asian Voice

Ilyas Kanybek

Opinion: Kazakhstan’s Critical Minerals Promise Is Running Out of Time

Tsoberg Nadezhda and Marzhan Rakhymberdina

Opinion: Kazakhstan’s Human Capital Problem – How State Scholarships Are Building a Talent Pipeline for the West

Anel Askar

Opinion: Expect China to take its 2+2 diplomacy to Central Asia

Ken Moriyasu

Opinion – Kazakhstan’s New Constitution Sends a Key Signal for Global Partners

Javier M. Piedra

Opinion: Trump Has Golden Opportunity to Launch C6+1 on Sidelines of UN

Ken Moriyasu

Opinion: Islamic State Khorasan Province and the Strategic Risks for Central Asia

Aidar Borangaziyev

Business & Economy

Vegetable Oil Exports

Kazakhstan Begins Vegetable Oil Exports to Iran via Caspian Route

Vegetable oil producers in Kazakhstan have launched a new export route to Iran across the Caspian Sea, completing several trial shipments of rapeseed and sunflower oil in spring 2026, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Agriculture said. According to Kazakhstan’s National Association of Oilseed Processors (NAOPK), the first shipment, consisting of 5,000 tons of rapeseed oil, departed from the Port of Aktau on April 4. The buyer was the Iranian company Kourosh Food Industry, while the supplier was one of Kazakhstan’s largest oil-processing plants affiliated with the association. On May 13, loading was completed for a second vessel carrying 5,000 tons of sunflower...

Critical Minerals

Central Asia Enters the Minerals Race

Mining

Astana Mining Congress to Highlight Kazakhstan’s Role in Critical Minerals

Exports

Kazakhstan Aims to Increase Non-Commodity Exports by More Than a Quarter by 2030

Labor Market

Kazakhstan Faces Shortage of Doctors and IT Specialists

Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan Labor Minister Briefs on Kazzinc Explosion and Effects of AI

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Labor and Social Protection is considering several possible causes behind the explosion at a Kazzinc plant in Ust-Kamenogorsk that killed three people. The incident occurred on the morning of May 5, when a dust collection unit exploded inside one of the plant’s workshops, triggering a fire and the partial collapse of structures. Two employees died at the scene, while another later died in hospital from his injuries. Five more were injured. “We are now determining the exact cause and who is responsible: whether it was non-compliance with safety regulations, failure to properly instruct workers on safety procedures,...

Energy

Uzbekistan Expands Energy Cooperation With SOCAR and BP at Energy Week Forum

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev held talks on May 13 with executives from Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR and energy giant BP during the Uzbekistan Energy Week 2026 forum in Tashkent. According to the Uzbekistan's presidency, Mirziyoyev met with SOCAR President Rovshan Najaf, as well as BP representatives Ariel Flores and Giovanni Cristofoli, to discuss expanding cooperation in the energy and oil and gas sectors. The sides noted the growing partnership between Uzbekistan and SOCAR, particularly in the development of hydrocarbon fields on the Ustyurt Plateau in western Uzbekistan. Officials also agreed to open a SOCAR representative office in Uzbekistan as cooperation...

Afghanistan

Opinion: The Southern Dimension of the Middle Corridor – Afghanistan’s Role in Eurasia’s New Logistics Landscape

Afghanistan’s integration into the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) is extending beyond local logistics and evolving into one of Eurasia’s key geo-economic projects. Amid the global transformation of supply chains, Central Asia has an opportunity to move beyond its role as a transit periphery and become an active participant in shaping new economic corridors, creating a full-fledged “southern dimension” of Eurasian connectivity. Two Routes: Strategic and Operational Two main directions for Afghanistan’s integration into the Eurasian transport system are currently under discussion, each reflecting a distinct development logic: strategic and pragmatic. The “Eastern Branch” (Termez-Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar) is traditionally viewed as the...

Industrial Production

Kyrgyzstan’s Industrial Output Rises as Employment Falls

Industrial production in Kyrgyzstan has increased more than six times over the past 15 years, although the sector’s share of the national economy has declined and employment in industry has fallen sharply, according to data from the National Statistical Committee. By the end of 2025, industry accounted for 17.7% of Kyrgyzstan’s GDP, compared to 20.7% in 2010. At the same time, industrial output increased by more than 530% over the same period. In 2010, the value of industrial production was estimated at around $1.4 billion, while by 2025 output had reached approximately $9.1 billion. The figures indicate significant industrial growth,...

Local Politics

Education

Kyrgyzstan Seeks Foreign Teachers to Ease Education Staff Shortage

A group of deputies in Kyrgyzstan’s Jogorku Kenesh, the national parliament, has drafted legislative amendments aimed at attracting foreign teachers and modernizing the country’s educational infrastructure through new legal and economic incentives. The proposed amendments were submitted for parliamentary consideration. Under the draft legislation, foreign teachers working in Kyrgyzstan would be exempt from income tax and mandatory social security payments. The bill would also grant foreign educators the right to obtain temporary residence permits. Additional measures include tax incentives for educational institutions and exemptions from value-added tax (VAT) on imported educational equipment. The authors of the amendments argue that modernizing...

Animal Rights

Kazakhstan Renews Debate Over Stray Animals After Parliament Approves Euthanasia Amendments

Mandatory Contributions

Healthcare Workers in Turkmenistan Reportedly Forced to Pay Mandatory Fees to Public Association

Parental Responsibility

Turkmenistan Introduces New Fines for Parents Over Children’s Misconduct

Kamchybek Tashiyev

Tashiyev Charged as Kyrgyzstan’s Elite Rift Deepens

Afghan Refugees

Tajikistan Officially Confirms Deportation of Afghan Refugees

Tajikistan’s State Committee for National Security (GKNB) has publicly commented for the first time on the deportation of Afghan citizens from the country, citing alleged violations of national law and crimes that the authorities said had sparked public outrage. The statement followed an appeal by Afghan citizen Muhammad Hakim Tursun, who criticized the deportation of his compatriots. In its response, published through the state news agency Khovar, the security service claimed that some Afghan citizens living in Tajikistan had “grossly violated the requirements of the law” despite being provided with conditions for residence, work, and education. To justify the deportations,...

Elections

Kazakhstan Rules Out Fines for Not Voting in Elections

Kazakhstan does not plan to introduce compulsory voting or impose fines on citizens who fail to participate in elections and referendums, Central Election Commission (CEC) Secretary Shavkat Utemisov said. Speaking on the sidelines of a joint session of parliament, Utemisov acknowledged that declining voter participation, particularly among young people, remains a challenge in Kazakhstan. He said, however, that the country does not intend to adopt practices used in some states where voting is mandatory. Utemisov added that some countries have lowered the voting age, citing Belgium, while others impose penalties, including fines, on citizens who fail to appear at polling...

Armed Forces

Tokayev Sets Two-Year Deadline for Military Reform in Kazakhstan

Speaking at a traditional ceremony ahead of Defender of the Fatherland Day, celebrated in Kazakhstan on May 7, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said the country must reform its armed forces within the next two years. “Our country must be prepared to prevent various challenges and respond to any threats. Therefore, we need to strengthen our defense potential and continue, above all, the technological modernization of the Armed Forces. This is a requirement of today’s unstable and turbulent times. In this regard, it is first necessary to carry out deep reforms in our Armed Forces and militarized structures. This is a strategically...

Education

School Digitalization in Turkmenistan Increases Workload for Teachers

The rollout of electronic gradebooks in Turkmenistan, intended to streamline teachers’ work, has had the opposite effect, with educators reporting increased workloads, technical issues, and tighter oversight. As part of a broader push toward digitalization, authorities have required school staff to use the eMekdep system to record grades, manage lesson plans, and generate analytics. According to its developers, the platform enables work “anytime, anywhere” and is designed to reduce paperwork. Teachers, however, say the reality is far less efficient. Electronic journals can only be filled out with a stable internet connection, which remains unreliable even in the capital. “If two...

International Affairs

State Visit

Rahmon Looks to China as Tajikistan’s Options Narrow

Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon just finished a state visit to China. Rahmon has made trips to China many times during the nearly 34 years he has been in power in Tajikistan, but this visit came during a critical period. Simply put, Tajikistan is losing the international importance it once had, and China might now be the most dependable friend remaining for Rahmon and his country. A ‘Sweet’ Start China established diplomatic ties with all five Central Asian countries at the start of 1992. Just months later, a civil war broke out in Tajikistan that would last until June 1997, but...

CA5+UK

Opinion: UK’s C6 Engagement and the Opportunity for British Geostrategic Renewal

Healthcare

Tajikistan Receives Nearly $1.9 Million in U.S. Medical Equipment

Organization of Turkic States

Turkic States to Focus on Artificial Intelligence at Kazakhstan Summit

UNFPA

UNFPA to Open Regional Demographic Resilience Hub in Almaty

Organization of Turkic States

Opinion: Turkey’s Third Vector: How the Turkic States Are Expanding Central Asia’s Room for Maneuver

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s May 13-14 state visit to Kazakhstan and the May 15 informal summit of the Organization of Turkic States in Turkistan should not be read as isolated diplomatic events. Together, they point to a larger shift in Central Asia’s geopolitical architecture. During Erdoğan’s visit to Astana, Kazakhstan and Turkey signed the Declaration on Eternal Friendship and Expanded Strategic Partnership, along with agreements covering trade, transport, energy, education, investment, defense cooperation, oil and gas, and financial-sector collaboration. The two sides also reaffirmed their goal of raising bilateral trade to $15 billion. Erdoğan was awarded the newly established Khoja...

State Visit

Erdoğan Visit Puts Trade, Transit, and Turkic Economic Integration at Center of Kazakhstan’s OTS Push

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s visit to Kazakhstan comes as Astana is trying to give the Organization of Turkic States a more practical economic role, linking trade, investment, transport, digital development, and business financing across the Turkic world. The visit centered on three connected events: Erdoğan’s official visit to Astana, the sixth meeting of the Kazakhstan-Turkey High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, and the informal summit of the Organization of Turkic States in Turkistan. Erdoğan arrived in Astana ahead of talks with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, while Turkish media reported that the agenda included transport links through the Middle Corridor, Caspian transit routes,...

TCA Interviews

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister on Kazakhstan, Trade, and War

As Kyiv works to rebuild ties across Central Asia, Kazakhstan has become one of Ukraine’s most important regional interlocutors. The relationship has been shaped by war, trade disruption, humanitarian support, and the search for new transport routes linking Asia and Europe. The Times of Central Asia has previously reported on Ukraine’s efforts to deepen engagement with Central Asia and on Astana and Kyiv’s attempts to restore trade ties. In an interview with TCA, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha discussed Kazakhstan’s role in this changing landscape, the prospects for economic cooperation, the Middle Corridor, post-war reconstruction, and the humanitarian and cultural...

Labor Migration

Uzbekistan Expands U.S. Labor Migration Talks in New York

A delegation from Uzbekistan held a series of meetings with international organizations, educational institutions, employers, and law firms during the International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) in New York, as Tashkent seeks to expand legal labor migration opportunities in the United States. According to Uzbekistan’s Migration Agency, the delegation included officials from the agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Uzbekistan’s embassy in Washington. The push comes as labor migration remains a major part of Uzbekistan’s economy. The Central Bank of Uzbekistan said remittance inflows reached high levels in 2025, with $9.9 billion arriving through traditional money transfer systems and another...

Life & Culture

Podcast

Pannier and Hillard’s Spotlight on Central Asia: New Episode Coming Sunday

As Managing Editor of The Times of Central Asia, I’m delighted that, in partnership with the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs, from October 19, we are the home of the Spotlight on Central Asia podcast. Chaired by seasoned broadcasters Bruce Pannier of RFE/RL’s long-running Majlis podcast and Michael Hillard of The Red Line, each fortnightly instalment will take you on a deep dive into the latest news, developments, security issues, and social trends across an increasingly pivotal region. This week, the team will be taking a look at Tajikistan's heir apparent, Rustam Emomali, with guests Salimjon Aioub, head of...

Space Exploration

Uzbekistan Plans to Send First National Cosmonaut Into Space by 2028

TCA Interviews

Identity and a New National Canon: Interview with Kazakhstan Historian Zhaxylyk Sabitov

UFO Files

Pentagon UFO Files Include 1994 Tajik Air Report Over Kazakhstan

Victory Day

Opinion: What May 9 Means to a Generation Without War Memories

TCA Interviews

Screenwriter Yefrat Sharipov on AI and the Future of Kazakhstani Cinema

Screenwriter Yefrat Sharipov is a graduate of Kazakhstan’s Academy of Civil Aviation and the New York Film Academy (NYFA), and one of the country’s most sought-after screenwriters in recent years. He worked on the box office hit Dos-Mukasan, a film about the legendary Kazakhstani musical group often described as the local equivalent of The Beatles. He now reflects on the future of global cinema, the role of artificial intelligence, and why Kazakhstani stories can resonate far beyond the country’s borders. In an interview with The Times of Central Asia, Sharipov discusses how engineering thinking shapes his approach to storytelling, why...

Demographics

Kazakhstan’s Demographic Shift Puts Labor Market Under Strain

Kazakhstan’s population surpassed 20.5 million in the spring of 2026, but the country’s rapid demographic growth is increasingly being accompanied by structural economic imbalances. Kazakhstan is simultaneously facing the effects of declining birth rates, population aging, and a widening gap between the education system and labor market needs. Economists warn that the country is entering a phase in which the large generation born during the baby boom of the 2000s is placing growing pressure on the labor market, even as the share of the working-age population gradually declines. According to Kazakhstan’s Bureau of National Statistics, the number of births peaked...

History

How Koreans Were Deported to Central Asia: Myths and Reality

The 1937 deportation from the Soviet Far East was the greatest tragedy in the history of Soviet Koreans, Koryo-saram, the self-designation of ethnic Koreans living across the former Soviet Union. It became the first case in Soviet history in which an entire ethnic group was forcibly relocated solely on the basis of ethnicity. Later, Soviet Germans, Crimean Tatars, Chechens, Ingush, Kalmyks, Poles, Kurds, and many other peoples would endure similar repression. For decades, this history remained largely suppressed, giving rise to numerous myths and misconceptions surrounding the deportation. Yet it is inaccurate to claim that Koreans first appeared in Kazakhstan...

Aging Population

Kazakhstan’s Population Is Aging Rapidly as Demographic Pressures Mount

Kazakhstan’s population is aging rapidly, with the number of elderly citizens growing significantly faster than the child population as birth rates continue to decline. According to a study by analysts at Energyprom.kz, the country’s aging index has been steadily rising. In 2021, Kazakhstan had 26.7 elderly people for every 100 children under the age of 15. By 2025, that figure had increased to 32.9. The data suggests Kazakhstan is gradually entering a demographic phase in which the proportion of elderly citizens is growing much faster than the younger population. The trend is particularly pronounced in urban areas, where the aging...

Justice

Jeffrey Epstein

Woman From Uzbekistan Says Jeffrey Epstein Abused Her for Years

A woman from Uzbekistan has publicly accused the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein of sexually abusing her over several years after she was recruited as a teenager with promises of a modeling career in the United States. According to the BBC, the woman, identified only as Roza, spoke publicly for the first time during a field hearing organized by Democratic members of the U.S. House Oversight Committee in West Palm Beach, Florida, a location lawmakers said was chosen because it was where Epstein’s crimes first became known. According to Roza’s testimony, she met French modeling agent Jean-Luc...

Religious Freedom

Uzbekistan National Deported From Russia Over Public Prayer

Visa Corruption

Former Italian Ambassador to Uzbekistan Arrested in Rome Over Visa Scheme Allegations

Syria

Syrian Security Forces Detain Uzbek Fighters During Operation in Idlib

Industrial Accident

Two Killed in Explosion at Industrial Plant in Eastern Kazakhstan

Pension

Tajikistan Pension Payments Suspended For 14,000 People Over Biometric Identification Rules

Authorities in Tajikistan have temporarily suspended pension payments to more than 14,000 people who failed to complete mandatory biometric identification procedures, according to the country’s Agency for Social Insurance and Pensions. The agency said that 14,022 pensioners did not complete the required re-registration process, resulting in the temporary suspension of transfers to their bank cards. Officials did not specify exactly when the payments were blocked. The pension re-registration campaign began in Tajikistan in the second half of November 2025 and was scheduled to conclude by the end of March this year. To complete the process, pensioners are required to appear...

Anti-Corruption

Uzbekistan Introduces Anti-Corruption Reviews for $50 Million Investment Projects

Uzbekistan has introduced mandatory anti-corruption reviews for major investment projects worth at least $50 million, as the government intensifies efforts to strengthen oversight of public spending and large-scale development initiatives. The new procedure was approved through an official instruction registered by the Ministry of Justice on May 8, according to the ministry’s Legal Information channel. Under the new rules, large investment projects involving at least $50 million in financing will be subject to anti-corruption examinations and assessments of their impact on market competition before they can move forward. The regulation applies to projects aimed at creating, expanding, or modernizing socially...

Student Driving Ban

Dushanbe Students Face Expulsion for Driving Private Vehicles to University

Seven students in Dushanbe face possible expulsion for up to three years after police conducted raids targeting university students who arrived for classes in private vehicles. The inspections were announced by the city’s Interior Ministry department, which said officers from the department for the prevention of youth-related offenses conducted raids near universities in the capital and recorded seven cases of students arriving on campus in their own cars. “Under current legal regulations and an order issued by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Tajikistan, students are strictly prohibited from arriving at classes in private vehicles,” the...

Pharmaceutical Business

Uzbek Agency Finds Systemic Failures in Dok-1 Max Case

Uzbekistan’s Anti-Corruption Agency has identified serious systemic shortcomings in the pharmaceutical sector following an analysis of court materials related to the Dok-1 Max case, according to a report reviewed by Gazeta.uz. The agency’s findings point to weaknesses in the processes for registering, certifying, and licensing medicines, where insufficient transparency and limited digitalization allowed a high degree of human discretion. This, in turn, created conditions for corruption risks to emerge. The case has already led to criminal convictions. On February 26, 2024, a Tashkent court sentenced several individuals to prison terms ranging from three to 20 years. Court documents indicate that...

Environment

Irrigation

Kazakhstan Sets Irrigation Limits for Southern Regions and Reduces Water-Intensive Crops

Kazakhstan has introduced limits on irrigation water use in its southern regions and is reducing the cultivation of water-intensive crops as authorities seek to prevent shortages during the 2026 growing season. At a government meeting on May 12, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Nurzhan Nurzhigitov said reservoirs in the country’s southern regions had accumulated 26.2 billion cubic meters of water, 500 million cubic meters more than during the same period last year. Agriculture in Kazakhstan’s arid southern regions depends heavily on water collected during the spring snowmelt period, as well as water flowing from upstream Kyrgyzstan. To avoid irrigation...

Kapchagay Reservoir

Kazakhstan’s Kapchagay Reservoir Reaches 98% Capacity

TCA Interviews

UNEP Interview: From Space, Central Asia’s Methane Challenge Comes Into Focus

kazakhstan wind power

China Energy Begins Construction of Major Wind Power Plant in Kazakhstan

Water Scarcity

Opinion: As Water Runs Short, Uzbekistan Faces New Migration Pressure

Toktogul Reservoir

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan Agree on Toktogul Water Releases

Energy and water ministers from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan signed a trilateral protocol in Tashkent on May 7 establishing agreed water release volumes and schedules from the Toktogul Reservoir for the next two months. The Toktogul Reservoir plays a central role in maintaining water and energy stability across Central Asia. The Toktogul Hydropower Plant, located on the Naryn River, the main tributary of the Syr Darya, is Kyrgyzstan’s largest power station and supplies around 40% of the country’s electricity. The reservoir serves a dual purpose: generating electricity for Kyrgyzstan while regulating water flows essential for downstream agriculture in Kazakhstan and...

Electric Vehicles

Kazakhstan to Introduce Green License Plates for Electric Vehicles

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs has backed a proposal by Mazhilis deputy Arman Kalykov to introduce green license plates for electric vehicles (EVs). Kalykov, a member of the Mazhilis Committee on Ecology and Nature Management, said separate identification for EVs is needed for traffic monitoring, road police checks, and access control. According to Kalykov, the measure is particularly relevant in environmentally protected areas. In the Shymbulak area near Almaty, for example, vehicles with internal combustion engines face restrictions, while EVs and emergency transport are allowed to enter. EVs are also allowed to remain in residential zones while running, while conventional...

Regional Ecological Summit

Opinion: The Regional Ecological Summit and the Making of a Central Asian Voice

On 22–24 April, Astana hosted the Regional Ecological Summit—a gathering of governments, international organizations, financial institutions, and civil society that marked a new level of ambition in Central Asia’s environmental diplomacy. Fifty-eight sessions were held across three days at a moment when Central Asia’s ecological agenda is becoming inseparable from its political and economic future. The opening ceremony was attended by the presidents of all five Central Asian states. The summit adopted the Astana Declaration on Ecological Solidarity in Central Asia and brought renewed attention to the need to reform the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS). Taken...

Climate Change

Uzbekistan and China to Develop Early Warning Systems for Dust Storms

Uzbekistan and China have agreed to expand cooperation on environmental protection, including the development of early warning systems for dust and sandstorms, according to Uzbekistan’s National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change. The agreement was discussed during a meeting between Aziz Abdukhakimov, Advisor to the President of Uzbekistan on environmental issues, and Huang Runqiu, China’s Minister of Ecology and Environment. The talks took place on the sidelines of a regional environmental summit. Both sides noted that cooperation between the two countries in environmental protection has been expanding and becoming more practical. Officials focused on joint efforts to address environmental challenges,...

Central Asia Enters the Minerals Race

Latest

Features

Features

Bishkek’s Backlash, Russia’s New Red Lines, and a Caspian in Crisis

Latest

Sunkar Podcast

Bishkek’s Backlash, Russia’s New Red Lines, and a Caspian in Crisis

Sunkar Podcast

Opinions

Opinions

Matthew Davies

Timur Serikuly

Charles McLean

Ken Moriyasu

Aidar Borangaziyev

Ilyas Kanybek

Tsoberg Nadezhda and Marzhan Rakhymberdina

Anel Askar

Ken Moriyasu

Javier M. Piedra

Ken Moriyasu

Aidar Borangaziyev

Business & Economy

Business & Economy

Kazakhstan Begins Vegetable Oil Exports to Iran via Caspian Route

Kazakhstan Labor Minister Briefs on Kazzinc Explosion and Effects of AI

Uzbekistan Expands Energy Cooperation With SOCAR and BP at Energy Week Forum

Opinion: The Southern Dimension of the Middle Corridor – Afghanistan’s Role in Eurasia’s New Logistics Landscape

Kyrgyzstan’s Industrial Output Rises as Employment Falls

Local Politics

Local Politics

Kyrgyzstan Seeks Foreign Teachers to Ease Education Staff Shortage

Tajikistan Officially Confirms Deportation of Afghan Refugees

Kazakhstan Rules Out Fines for Not Voting in Elections

Tokayev Sets Two-Year Deadline for Military Reform in Kazakhstan

School Digitalization in Turkmenistan Increases Workload for Teachers

International Affairs

International Affairs

Rahmon Looks to China as Tajikistan’s Options Narrow

Opinion: Turkey’s Third Vector: How the Turkic States Are Expanding Central Asia’s Room for Maneuver

Erdoğan Visit Puts Trade, Transit, and Turkic Economic Integration at Center of Kazakhstan’s OTS Push

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister on Kazakhstan, Trade, and War

Uzbekistan Expands U.S. Labor Migration Talks in New York

Life & Culture

Life & Culture

Pannier and Hillard’s Spotlight on Central Asia: New Episode Coming Sunday

Screenwriter Yefrat Sharipov on AI and the Future of Kazakhstani Cinema

Kazakhstan’s Demographic Shift Puts Labor Market Under Strain

How Koreans Were Deported to Central Asia: Myths and Reality

Kazakhstan’s Population Is Aging Rapidly as Demographic Pressures Mount

Justice

Justice

Woman From Uzbekistan Says Jeffrey Epstein Abused Her for Years