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Monument to Al-Beruniy erected in the USA

The bust was installed in front of the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Washington DC, and it was noted that it is a scientific bridge between the two countries. On January 22 of this year, a monument depicting the figure of the great scientist Al-Beruniy was opened in the US capital. The bust was installed in front of the Embassy of Uzbekistan. Frederick Starr, chairman of the Central Asia and Caucasus Institute at Johns Hopkins University, author of the book “The Genius of their Age” dedicated to Al-Beruniy and Ibn Sina, and others took part in the opening ceremony. Furqat Siddikov, the ambassador of Uzbekistan to the United States and Canada, stated that Al-Beruniy was the one who first discovered this continent before America was established. In this sense, knowledge is shared. By conducting research in particular sciences, he left an unparalleled legacy. The ambassador described Al-Beruniy as a scientific bridge uniting two nations. “As Americans learn about this scientist, their views on Uzbekistan will expand, nations will come closer to each other” said the ambassador.

“At a Crossroads” – Atlantic Council Addresses Rare Earth Elements in Central Asia

On January 23rd, the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center and the International Tax and Investment Center gathered together the authors of the report, “Leveraging Central Asia’s Rare Earth Elements for Economic Growth.” The report highlights the potential of Central Asia, which has remained underappreciated in terms of its rare earth elements (REE) resources, despite its increasing geopolitical significance. China currently dominates the global mining and refining of REEs, giving it a near-monopoly status. The report argues that this scenario calls for an urgent need to diversify global supply chains and suggests that Western investment could play a pivotal role in exploring and mining Central Asia's REEs, thereby contributing to the diversification of supply chains. Furthermore, such investment could have far-reaching implications for the region itself, bolstering regional integration and sovereignty, spurring economic growth, and enhancing economic freedom throughout Central Asia. Opening the discussion, Ariel Cohen, a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Eurasia Center of the Atlantic Council, highlighted the critical geopolitical location of Central Asia, stating that REEs “may be the next big thing in Central Asia at the engine of economic growth.” Cohen praised the “visionary multi-vector policy pioneered” in Kazakhstan by President Tokayev, and characterized Kazakhstan’s relationship with Russia as “very fraught,” and defined by “multi-generational trauma. Nuclear energy is zero emission energy,” he said, but for the U.S. to capitalize on opportunities for mining REEs in Kazakhstan, “we need to do more and better.” The President of Second Floor Strategies, a public policy consulting company, Wilder Alejandro Sánchez emphasized that Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are the most “forward-looking” nations in Central Asia in regard to REEs, whilst mining in Kyrgyzstan remains stuck in a “legal limbo,” and Tajikistan currently lacks the necessary critical infrastructure. Nether the less, he stated, REEs could become a driving factor behind regional “cooperation and integration.” Wesley Hill, an International Program Manager at the Energy, Growth, and Security Program of the International Tax and Investment Center, spoke about the international relations components of REEs. “In the same way we competed and continued to compete for other energy resources, most especially crude oil, we will be competing for REEs,” he stated. “It's happening already, this geopolitical clash [which is] primarily driven by competition between the United States and China. After the publication of this report, Beijing cut off all exports of rare earth element refining technologies to the United States. Central Asia is very much at a crossroads,” he stated. Addressing this geopolitical conflict with China over REEs, Ambassador John Herbst, a Senior Director at the Eurasia Center of the Atlantic Council, stated that Central Asia is a “critical region… rich in rare earth minerals [whilst] China is our principal adversary. They are not a friend of the United States.” Finally, Suriya Evans-Pritchard Jayanti, a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Eurasia Center of the Atlantic Council, characterized REEs as an “extremely important development opportunity” for Central Asia, particularly given “geostrategic energy realignment after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I think it's a geostrategic realignment opportunity for...

Kazakhstan Justice Features

Shipment of psychotropic substances seized in Almaty

The press service of the National Security Committee has reported the seizure of a record shipment of psychotropic substances in Almaty. The laboratory for the manufacture of synthetic drugs was organized in a private house, which reportedly was rented. The organizer of the illegal drug laboratory was a 26-year-old citizen of Kazakhstan. During the operation, the service seized more than 200kg of finished mephedrone, which is approximately equal to 610,000 single doses, as well as more than 100 liters of raw materials for its subsequent manufacture. Such a volume of finished substances indicates that the laboratory was the largest in the country. The investigation revealed that the entire volume of psychotropic substances was intended for distribution in Kazakhstan. The owner of the drug laboratory has been detained and is in custody awaiting trial. Over the past year, the drug situation in Central Asian countries has been characterized by an increase in the production of opiates and methamphetamine in Afghanistan, the emergence of new types of synthetic drugs and methods of their distribution. The increase in drug turnover in Central Asian countries for 2023 exceeded 100%. From January to September 2023 alone, more than 40 tons of precursors were seized from illicit trafficking, which is 144% or more than in the same period of 2022.

Kazakhstan Features Kazakhstan Featurees

Earthquake In Almaty: Residents Speak Of Panic And Damage

A magnitude seven earthquake shook Almaty last night, causing panic among local residents. However, some locals have said the situation was not as bad as it was portrayed on social media and in news reports. "They said it was a level seven magnitude earthquake, but my friend lives on the seventh floor and his furniture only wobbled, but nothing fell," Anastasia, a resident of the city told The Times of Central Asia. Despite the fact that numerous videos have appeared on the internet showing people in distress and buildings violently shaking, some have claimed that many of the videos are fakes, saying that the shaking was palpable, but did not reach levels that would cause widespread alarm. "The only thing that caused panic was a severe tremor in residential complexes that made the chandeliers wobble. My family and I drove into the city; traffic was crazy," Sanjar, a resident living on the outskirts of the city told The Times of Central Asia. Nevertheless, others spoke of feeling fear and anxiety during the earthquake, with another resident, Raushan telling The Times of Central Asia that "“Just after midnight we felt swaying and tremors, which was especially frightening considering we live on the 12th floor. First, the bed started to shake, and then I noticed the chandelier swinging violently. We quickly ran out of the apartment taking our passports and wallets. The worst part was that we were left with no communication as we had forgotten our phones, so we couldn’t contact our loved ones."

Central Asia Home Uzbekistan Life & Culture Features Uzbekistan Life & Culture

The Last Emir of Bukhara – In the Shadow of Antiquity

The seventh largest city in Uzbekistan, the history of Bukhara is swathed in legends which stretch back for millennia and can be traced to the period of Aryan immigration into the region. After passing through the hands of Alexander the Great, the Bactrians, the Kushan Empire and many others, Bukhara became an epicenter of Persian culture in medieval Asia. With the rise of the Caliphate, by the end of the ninth century Bukhara was one of the most significant Islamic and cultural sites in the region. Throughout its history, Bukhara has been nourished by merchants and travelers, establishing itself as a major hub of trade and crafts on the Silk Road. Today, in the orange early morning light, women holding parasols walk their children to school down gravel alleyways to the ever-present hum of air-con units. Broom-wielding figures in high-viz orange jackets cast bulbous shadows as they sweep the dust from side to side. As the sun arcs towards its zenith, a haze develops, the heat so overpowering that even the hawkers lose the will to sell. Weaving past scant pedestrians, infrequent marshrutkas head out of town towards the glittering Summer Palace of Bukhara’s last Emir, the outsized Sayyid Mir Muhammad Alim Khan. Beyond the imposing majolica tiled gateway of the Russian-built Sitora-I Mohi Khosa – Palace of the Stars and the Magnificent Moon - the banqueting hall contains an elaborate bronze chandelier from Poland weighing half a ton. To gasps of awe, Bukhara’s first electric light shone from it during the 1910s thanks to a fifty-watt generator.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="12020" img_size="full" el_class="scond-image" parallax_scroll="no" woodmart_inline="no"][vc_column_text woodmart_inline="no" text_larger="no"]An avenue of quince trees leads to an ostentation of peacocks parading around a voluminous pool, where the Emir’s harem used to frolic. Raised on a platform high above them, the Emir would sit upon his gilded throne, bejeweled and decked in golden threads, choosing his lady for the night. Escaping the conflict between reformers and imams, and ever more dependent upon the overlords who would inevitably bring about his downfall, Amir Khan spent his last years as ruler cocooned in the Summer Palace, sating his gluttonous appetite from a glass-fronted Russian refrigerator.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="13877" img_size="full" el_class="scond-image" parallax_scroll="no" woodmart_inline="no"][vc_column_text woodmart_inline="no" text_larger="no"]Putting his lot in with the reformers, then switching sides in the face of the mullah’s power, in his final years the last Emir was a leaf in the wind. These were the dark days of mass executions, book burnings, and an intellectual exodus from the Emirate. When the ripples from the Bolshevik Revolution reached his kingdom, Alim Khan declared a Holy War upon the Russians and their reformist allies, the Young Bukharans. With Russian gunners initially forced back by frenzied, knife-wielding true believers, tit-for-tat retributions took place before, with their inevitable victory sealed, the Red Army set about pillaging and murdering their vanquished foes. On September 2nd 1920, soldiers raised the Red Banner from the bombed-out lantern of the Kalon Minaret. From the ninth-century Pit of the Herbalists to the Ismail Samani Mausoleum, Bukhara isn’t about...

Kazakhstan Business & Economy Kazakhstan Business & Economy Features Kazakhstan Featurees

Kazakhstan Seeks FAO Support in Promoting Exports of Aport Apples

During his official visit to Italy on January 18th, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met with Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Qu Dongyu. Tokayev and the FAO head attended a presentation of the famous Kazakh aport apples as part of the FAO’s One Country One Priority Product program, the Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture reported. “Kazakhstan is widely known as the birthplace of apples,” the President said. “Aport apples grow in the vicinity of Almaty, the largest metropolis in our country and my hometown. Translated from Kazakh, ‘Almaty’ means ‘place of abundance of apples.’” Aport apples are distinguished by their large size, distinct smell, and their succulent nature. One of the main landmarks in Almaty, the first sight to greet visitors to the Kok-Tobe Mountain which looms over the city is a granite statue of an apple with water gushing from its core.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="13860" img_size="full" el_class="scond-image" parallax_scroll="no" woodmart_inline="no"][vc_column_text woodmart_inline="no" text_larger="no"]Tokayev expressed his hope that Kazakhstan’s initiative to promote aport exports on world markets will be supported by the FAO. In 1970, there were 3.8 million aport trees in Kazakhstan, but by 1984, only 1.4 million remained. In 2012, scientific research began on the revival and rejuvenation of the variety, including the establishment of an experimental garden of aport grafted onto Sievers apple trees, where in 2023, Kazakh scholars harvested the first large fruits weighing 400-500 g. FAO's One Country One Priority Product program was launched in September 2021. It focuses on initiatives for the green development of high-value agricultural products with unique qualities and special characteristics associated with a geographic region, agricultural practices, and cultural heritage. Other countries with their own distinct products also participate in the program. For example, Turkey is represented by figs, Moldova by table grapes, and Uzbekistan by cherries.