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KABUL (TCA) — General John Nicholson, the commander of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan, told the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee on February 9 that Russia had significantly increased covert and overt support for the Taliban, with a goal of “undermining the United States and NATO," RFE/RL reports. Continue reading
BISHKEK (TCA) — Amid reports on Russia’s alleged contacts with the Taliban, apparently in an effort to strengthen Moscow’s position and influence in Afghanistan and Central Asia, we are republishing this article by Stephen Blank, originally published by The Jamestown Foundation’s Eurasia Daily Monitor: Continue reading
LONDON (TCA) — Are the governments of Central Asia’s post-Soviet republics taking effective action to root out the phantom of terrorism lurking in all corners of the region? The awkward question was carefully avoided during the latest peace talks on Syria in Astana. Fact remains, however, that thousands of nationals of Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and (most of all) Uzbekistan are “fighting” in Syria and northern Iraq. In the meantime a rather large number of them are also spreading over the world to replace terrorists originating from the Near-East to spread new waves of havoc, while others “bring terror home” by returning to their countries of origin ready to carry out attacks on their own communities. However, so far nobody has properly mapped the overall situation. Continue reading
BISHKEK (TCA) — Is Astana going to become a regular meeting point for squabbling parties in troubled corners of the world, shooting it out at home but inclined to compromise to spare lives and economies? The results of the talks on the situation in Syria, which ended with mostly a confirmation of the status quo excluding any outlook of a longer-term political situation in Syria, are an ambiguous indication of such a prospect. UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura was quoted as stating: "Kazakhstan, under the leadership of President (Nursultan) Nazarbayev, has provided a remarkable contribution to our efforts to push for peace in Syria." Continue reading
LONDON (TCA) — What is at stake at the upcoming negotiations in Astana between the parties involved in the terrible civil war in Syria? The fact that the Syrian government and most (though not all) of the so-called moderate opposition have promised to be present means little. Those “moderate” groups are in fact armed militias grouped around political chiefs after the notorious model of Lebanon during its 16-year civil war. Iran, Turkey, Russia and most European states appear to be willing to live with that. Two wildcards remain: the USA and Saudi Arabia. Continue reading
BISHKEK (TCA) — Contradicting reports referring to the Turkish authorities have spread all over the media for more than a week following the deadly attack on an Istanbul nightclub. Even though IS has claimed responsibility it remains unclear who the perpetrator was and on whose behalf he acted. Continue reading
