Page 249 – The Times Of Central Asia

04 Jun 2025

Silk Road Treasures, Home, Uzbekistan, Life & Culture, Kyrgyzstan Life & Culture, Kazakhstan Life & Culture, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan Life & Culture

Where East Meets West: Seventh Eurasian Film Festival Celebrates Cinema in London

June 4, 2025
By Stephen M. Bland

From May 22 to 27, the seventh Eurasian Film Festival brought a celebration of Eurasian cinema to London. Organized by Silk Road Media and the Eurasian Creative Guild (ECG), the event, held in partnership with the Romford Film Festival, showcased a range of artistic talents while fostering cultural and industry connections.

This year’s festival featured submissions from 23 countries, providing a diverse line-up of feature films, shorts, documentaries, animation, music videos, screenplays, and more. The event provided a platform for filmmakers to share stories rooted in Eurasia’s cultural heritage.

Prize-Winning Films

This year’s awards spanned a range of categories, honoring creativity and technical excellence. Highlights included Sirin’s Song by Elena Turova (Belarus) for Best Animation and The Master of the Altai Mountains by Vadim Vitovtsev and Ilya Tsyganov (Russia) as for Best Documentary. The Audience Award in this category went to Baltic Radiation by Aldona Grupas (UK). In the feature film category, Where The White Cranes Dance (Russia) and Aydillar (Uzbekistan) shared the top honor, with Magtymguly Pyragy (Turkmenistan/Uzbekistan) taking the Audience Award.

Kazakhstan made a strong showing in the Short Films category, with Poncha by Kaisha Rakhimova taking first place and Call by Asem Kuanishbayeva winning the Audience Award. Several screenplays and productions also received special jury mentions, including Daddy Arrived by Almaz Kossobaev (Kyrgyzstan), emphasizing the festival’s role in highlighting emerging talent.

Literature Meets Film

A notable theme this year was the dialogue between literature and cinema. Presentations included The Legends of the Great Silk Road: Adventures of the Spirit of Time a children’s book series by Gulchekhra-begim Makhmudova, exploring its adaptation into film. Ukrainian poet Serhii Bely also unveiled a project based on his novel The Maestro and the Muse.

Special Recognitions and Events

The festival also celebrated cultural contributions, with the Poezija Londyn Foundation presenting honorary medals to individuals such as Zhazira Zhanabayeva (Kazakhstan), whose art exhibition ran concurrently with the festival. A crowdfunding event led by actress Francesca Mepham generated significant interest in new projects, showcasing the event’s collaborative spirit.

Submissions are now open for the 2026 season, as the festival continues to spotlight Eurasian cinema on the global stage.

04 Jun 2025

Home, Life & Culture, Kazakhstan Life & Culture

Bublik Loses at Roland Garros After Run to Quarterfinals

June 4, 2025
By Times of Central Asia

Alexander Bublik’s impressive run at the French Open is over.

The Russia-born tennis player from Kazakhstan was routed by top-ranked Jannick Sinner of Italy in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros on Wednesday.

Sinner easily defeated Bublik 6-1, 7-5, 6-0, ending the match with a serve down the middle and then a crosscourt forehand winner. Still, Bublik smiled as he walked up to the net to shake hands and exchanged a few warm words with Sinner.

Bublik’s run to the quarterfinals was his best performance in a major tournament despite his past declarations that he detested playing on clay.

04 Jun 2025

Central Asia, Environment, Home, Kazakhstan Environment, Kazakhstan, Features, Kazakhstan Featurees, Kazakhstan Home

European Zoos Aid Kazakhstan’s Przewalski’s Horse Reintroduction

June 4, 2025
By Vagit Ismailov

On June 3, a new group of Przewalski’s horses arrived in Kazakhstan as part of the international “Return of the Wild Horses” project. This marks the second such transfer, with the animals delivered from Prague Zoo and Hungary’s Hortobágy National Park.

Supervised Adaptation in Altyn Dala

Four horses were flown in by two military transport aircraft, landing early in the morning at Arkalyk Airport. They were then transported for five hours to the Altyn Dala State Reserve, where they will remain for a year under expert supervision before their release into the wild.

Located in the Kostanay region, the Altyn Dala reserve provides the necessary infrastructure and qualified personnel to ensure successful acclimatization. According to Daniyar Turgambaev, chairman of the Forestry and Wildlife Committee, the second group has been safely delivered, while the first group is already ready for life in the open steppe.

“For us, as the leading body for biodiversity conservation in Kazakhstan, it is a great honor to lead such an important stage in the restoration of our nature,” he said.

Unexpected Incident in Prague

One stallion, named Whisky, caused a stir in Prague prior to departure. He kicked open the door of a moving trailer and ended up loose on a highway near Černý Most, disrupting traffic on the Prague Ring Road and the city’s South Highway. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.

According to Miroslav Bobek, director of the Prague Zoo, Whisky was sedated and returned to the zoo. The remaining horses were successfully loaded and sent to Kazakhstan.

Reviving a Wild Species

Przewalski’s horse is the last surviving species of true wild horse, once extinct in the wild by the mid-20th century. Its survival has depended entirely on captive breeding programs. Kazakhstan began its reintroduction efforts in 2024 with support from several international partners: the Prague Zoo, Association for the Conservation of Biodiversity of Kazakhstan (ACBK), the Frankfurt Zoological Society, and the Nuremberg and Berlin Zoos, as well as the Hortobágy National Park.

The initial group of seven horses arrived in June 2024. They endured harsh conditions in the Turgai steppe, including temperatures dropping to -30 °C. Two mares, Umbra and Vesper, were fitted with GPS collars to monitor their movements after release.

Ecological Significance

The Altyn Dala reserve, established in 2012, spans nearly 490,000 hectares. It also hosts a parallel program for the reintroduction of kulans (Asiatic wild asses). By 2029, authorities aim to reintroduce 40-45 Przewalski’s horses, enough to establish a self-sustaining population. As Bobek notes, the project will continue until “a viable and genetically diverse population is formed.”

Przewalski’s horses play a crucial role in steppe ecosystems by controlling vegetation, reducing the risk of wildfires, and facilitating winter survival for other species through snow clearance and trail formation.

The species is listed in the Red Book of Kazakhstan and in Appendix II of the CITES Convention. A memorandum signed on February 28, 2023, provides for the transport of at least 40 wild horses to Kazakhstan over the next four to five years. The Altyn Dala Center, operated by ACBK, is now a central hub for restoring endangered species to their natural habitats.

04 Jun 2025

Central Asia, Environment, Kazakhstan Environment, Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan Weighs Legalizing the Culling of Female Saigas Amid Population Surge

June 4, 2025
By Dmitry Pokidaev

Kazakhstan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, Erlan Nysanbayev, has announced that the government is considering allowing the selective culling of female saiga antelopes in response to their rapidly expanding population.

Once listed as an endangered species, the saiga antelope population in Kazakhstan plummeted to fewer than 40,000 by 2005 due to overhunting and habitat loss. In response, the government imposed strict hunting bans and conservation measures, which allowed the species to rebound significantly, reaching an estimated 1.3 million animals in recent years.

However, by the end of 2024, the saiga population had reportedly reached 4 million, prompting renewed debate over population control. Farmers have raised concerns about crop destruction and the risk of disease transmission from saigas intermingling with livestock on shared pastures.

“We have vast expanses of land, but not enough inspectors to monitor every hunter,” Nysanbayev said during a briefing at the Mazhilis, the lower house of parliament. “We had a negative experience previously, when hunting was permitted, the steppe was littered with saiga carcasses, their horns sawed off. So, we are now considering allowing hunting only for females, possibly exclusively for females. But the technical implementation is still under discussion with hunting organizations.”

Processing Infrastructure Ready

Nysanbayev also stated that meat from culled saigas would be sold in commercial outlets. According to the ministry, 13 meat-processing facilities across regions populated by saigas, West Kazakhstan, Atyrau, Aktobe, Kostanay, Akmola, Karaganda, and Pavlodar, are prepared to handle up to 3,700 animals daily following recent inspections.

The final decision on the culling plan awaits a biological justification from the Institute of Zoology. Experts will assess the ecological viability of the measure before the government proceeds.

Regional Conservation Efforts

While Kazakhstan is considering population control measures for saigas due to their rapid rebound, neighboring Kyrgyzstan is focused on species recovery. The Times of Central Asia previously reported that in May 2025, Kyrgyzstan launched a conservation initiative to reintroduce the jayran, or goitered gazelle, a species also listed in the Red Book, along the southern shore of Lake Issyk-Kul.

04 Jun 2025

Home, International Affairs, Kazakhstan International Affairs, Kazakhstan, Features, Kazakhstan Featurees

Operation Spider Web Rattles Russia as Kazakhstan Battles Disinformation

June 5, 2025
By Andrei Matveev

Sunday, June 1, was described by some Russian commentators as the country’s own “Pearl Harbor” following a Ukrainian drone offensive that struck multiple Russian military airfields. Dubbed Operation Spider’s Web, the strikes, targeting air bases in Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Ryazan, and Amur regions were carried out by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) and sent shockwaves through Russian society.

As criticism mounted over the failures of Russia’s air defense and intelligence apparatus, some voices in Russia began directing attention toward Kazakhstan, attempting to link it, however tenuously, to the Ukrainian operation.

The Operation and Its Tactics

The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed the June 1 drone attacks but reported fires at only two bases, in Murmansk and Irkutsk, with no casualties. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the operation as an “absolutely brilliant result,” emphasizing that it had been in development for 18 months.

The method of using vehicles disguised as civilian freight, such as trucks carrying wooden houses filled with drones, was not new. Russian special services have previously intercepted similar transport efforts, and some military bloggers had already documented such tactics.

Kazakhstan’s Alleged Involvement

According to the Russian authorities, operational preparations for the June 1 attack began in December 2024. Officials in Irkutsk announced a manhunt for 37-year-old Artem Timofeev, a Ukrainian former DJ suspected of organizing the drone launches from vehicles registered to him. Timofeev’s background remains murky: while some sources say he was born in Zhytomyr, others claim Donetsk. He reportedly lived in Kyiv before relocating to Russia’s Chelyabinsk region.

The only known connection to Kazakhstan is unconfirmed reports of Timofeev’s departure – along with his wife, an erotic fiction writer – to Astana just days before the strikes. This limited detail, however, fueled speculation on Russian Telegram channels that drone components may have entered Russia via Kazakhstan or that its proximity made it a convenient staging point, with one baselessly claiming that “All the spare parts and explosives arrived via fraternal Kazakhstan.”

Official Response from Kazakhstan

Kazakh officials quickly dismissed these allegations. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aibek Smadiyarov stated, “There is no official confirmation of this. I will leave it to the theorists among our experts. I cannot comment on conspiracy theories and all sorts of mysteries.”

Mazhilis deputy Konstantin Avershin characterized the accusations as “information sabotage” aimed at destabilizing Kazakhstan’s relations with Russia. “I regularly visit such production facilities and can officially state that neither components nor finished products could have fallen into the wrong hands,” he said.

Military analyst and retired colonel Darkhan Daniyarov echoed this view, calling the allegations external propaganda. “Kazakhstan complies with all international norms, ensures transparent export controls, and remains a supporter of peace, neutrality, and good neighborliness,” he stated, adding that since 2022, Kazakhstan has introduced strict controls on dual-use goods to prevent their re-export for military purposes.

Former KNB Chairman Nartay Dutbayev also questioned the plausibility of the claims, stating it would be easier to obtain explosives within Russia than to smuggle them from Kazakhstan.

A Broader Narrative

Accusations implicating Kazakhstan in Ukrainian drone attacks are not new. In April 2024, Russian State Duma Defense Committee member Lt. Gen. Andrei Gurulev claimed that drones attacking sites in Tatarstan may have originated from Kazakhstan’s sparsely monitored steppe regions.

Such narratives reflect a broader attitude toward Kazakhstan’s territorial control emanating from Moscow. This perspective suggests a belief that Russia must intervene to “restore order” in what was once known as its “near abroad,” a notion that is increasingly being met not with apprehension, but with open irritation in Central Asia.

04 Jun 2025

Central Asia, Justice, Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan Features, Uzbekistan Justice

Humans Group Files Arbitration Against Uzbekistan Over Alleged Investment Violations

June 4, 2025
By Sadokat Jalolova

Humans Mobile Ltd, a subsidiary of the Singapore-based Humans Group, has initiated arbitration proceedings against Uzbekistan at the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). The case, registered under ARB/25/24, alleges that Uzbekistan violated a 2003 bilateral investment treaty between the two countries.

According to an official statement published by Bilaterals, Humans Mobile seeks compensation for damages it claims were caused by the actions of several Uzbek state authorities. The company argues that these actions disrupted its operations and compromised the rule of law in the country.

“We have always believed in Uzbekistan and its citizens,” said Vladimir Dobrynin, CEO and founder of Humans Group. “But transformation efforts must be supported by fair and predictable rules. Arbitration is a standard process to protect investors against unfair treatment.”

Dobrynin added that the arbitration aims not only to secure compensation but also to promote legal stability and strengthen the investment climate in Uzbekistan.

Humans Group operates in the United States, Uzbekistan, Poland, Singapore, and Germany. Its Uzbek venture, Humans.uz, functions as a “super app” combining financial services, mobile communications, grocery delivery, and online retail.

Market Dispute with Uzbektelecom

In a separate but related development, Humans filed a complaint on May 8, 2025, with Uzbekistan’s Antimonopoly Committee, requesting an investigation into the state-owned telecom operator Uzbektelecom. The company accuses Uzbektelecom of abusing its dominant market position by maintaining high internet prices.

As a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO), Humans relies on Uzbektelecom’s infrastructure under a contract signed in May 2020. According to the complaint, while global internet prices have declined since 2021, Uzbektelecom has not adjusted its rates accordingly. Humans argues that despite lowering its own prices to stay competitive, unchanging infrastructure costs now account for 58% of its total service costs, making its business model unsustainable.

“There is no economic reason to maintain such high prices. Uzbektelecom is receiving unjustified profit at the expense of infrastructure users like us,” the company stated in its complaint, as quoted by Spot.

Humans also revealed that it has incurred significant debt due to what it describes as “monopoly-level pricing.” In a March 27, 2024, warning letter, Uzbektelecom demanded repayment of 532 billion Uzbek soums, comprising 361 billion in outstanding payments and over 170 billion in penalties. The company warned that internet speeds would be throttled starting March 1, 2025, with full disconnection by June 1 if the debt remains unpaid. Legal action may also follow.

Uzbekistan’s Track Record in Arbitration

This is not the first time Uzbekistan has faced international arbitration. The Times of Central Asia previously reported that Uzbekistan won a case brought by Turkish textile firm Bursel Tekstil, which had sought $700 million in damages over alleged breaches of cotton pricing and tax policy commitments. The tribunal ultimately ruled in favor of Uzbekistan and ordered Bursel to pay legal costs.

In another high-profile case reported by The Times of Central Asia, the ICSID ruled in May 2024 that Kyrgyzstan must return four resorts to Uzbekistan. The tribunal found that Kyrgyzstan violated a 1992 post-Soviet agreement recognizing the original ownership of properties located across former Soviet republic borders.