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War in Ukraine

Astana’s Delicate Role in Ukraine Peace Efforts

Despite its close economic, historical, and cultural ties with Russia, Kazakhstan has maintained constructive relations with Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. That diplomatic balance was on display again on August 10, when President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to discuss prospects for a peace agreement. According to official sources, Ukraine initiated the call, and Tokayev reaffirmed Kazakhstan’s “unconditional interest in establishing a lasting peace in Ukraine based on the principles of international law.” Astana supports a “joint search for a peaceful solution on a fair basis” and consistently advocates compliance with the UN Charter, the inviolability of borders, and the territorial integrity of sovereign states. Kazakh political analyst Marat Shibutov has suggested that Zelenskyy is seeking support ahead of a potential shift in the confrontation with Russia. “On the eve of the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska, Zelenskyy is calling the leaders of other countries. He is seeking not only to secure better conditions for Ukraine, but also to understand what his personal political future holds. Yesterday, he spoke with Macron, Meloni, Tusk, Stubb, von der Leyen, Sánchez, and Starmer. Today, he spoke with Swedish Prime Minister Kristersson, Ilham Aliyev, and President Tokayev,” Shibutov wrote. According to Shibutov, Zelenskyy emphasized European support for Ukraine’s participation in negotiations. However, Tokayev, an experienced diplomat, may have cautioned that the outcome of the U.S.-Russia talks is unpredictable. “They depend on domestic politics,” Shibutov noted. “In the U.S., Trump’s electorate wants an end to the war and military aid to Ukraine halted, while many in Russia want Ukraine’s complete defeat and elimination as a state. In such conditions, Ukraine will have to make concessions. Territorial integrity is good, but not at the cost of the state’s very existence.” The official statement from Tokayev’s office cited the old proverb: “A bad peace is better than a good war.” Support During the War On March 6, 2022, shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion, an anti-war rally was held in Almaty. Participants carried Ukrainian flags, blue-and-yellow balloons, and anti-war posters. That same month, Kazakhstan sent humanitarian aid worth more than $2 million, including 25 types of medical supplies weighing 82 tons. Volunteers also collected food, hygiene products, medicines, and animal feed worth 150 million tenge. Kazakh entrepreneurs delivered aid and generators to Ukrainian hospitals. In the summer of 2023, a Kazakh company helped repair a medical facility in Mykolaiv damaged by Russian shelling. The installation of “yurts of indestructibility” in war-affected Ukrainian cities also gained wide recognition. In Kyiv alone, more than 100,000 people visited such a yurt to charge phones, warm up, and enjoy free Kazakh national dishes. Only According to the UN Charter Kazakhstan’s deep economic ties with Russia include oil and gas transit, gasoline supplies, and imports of food and medicine. The two countries share the world’s second-longest land border, spanning 4,750 miles. Cooperation on transboundary rivers is also critical. In contrast, Kazakhstan’s links with Ukraine are modest, consisting largely of historical ties and family connections. Pre-war trade...

Politics

Tokayev Awarded Ninth-Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo

On Tuesday, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was awarded a ninth-degree black belt, the highest distinction in taekwondo, by Chungwon Choue, president of World Taekwondo (WT), during his visit to Astana. The WT president arrived in Kazakhstan to attend the Kazakhstan Open 2025, an international G-1 ranking tournament taking place from August 14-16. More than 750 athletes from 22 countries will compete in three age categories: cadets, juniors, and adults. On the eve of the tournament, Tokayev presented Choue with the Order of Dostyk, Second Class, in recognition of his contribution to the global development of taekwondo. In return, Choue awarded the Kazakh leader the ninth-degree black belt, symbolizing the highest level of skill and knowledge in the sport. Tokayev said Choue’s visit was a significant event for Kazakhstan’s sporting community and reaffirmed World Taekwondo’s readiness to support the discipline’s growth in the country. Hosting major international competitions in Astana, he noted, will create new opportunities for Kazakhstani athletes and strengthen the national federation’s position. Earlier, Choue met with Gennady Golovkin, President of the National Olympic Committee of Kazakhstan, to discuss the future of taekwondo in the country. The WT president announced that e-Taekwondo will be added to the Youth Olympic Games and continental championships from 2026. Kazakhstan has already secured the right to host the Grand Prix Final in 2026 and is preparing a bid for the 2027 World Championships. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, Taekwondo has been part of the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games program and has featured in both the Olympic and Paralympic Games since 2000.

Politics

Saida Mirziyoyeva, Uzbek President’s Daughter, Grows Her Authority

Saida Mirziyoyeva, the eldest daughter of Uzbekistan’s president Shavkat Mirziyoyev, will focus on education, business, the judicial and legal system, healthcare, and water resources in her new job as head of the presidential administration. Mirziyoyev has signed a decree with details about the structure of the office that his daughter took over last month, handing her authority in a wide range of areas that are critical to Uzbekistan’s efforts to modernize its economy and society. The move points to the increasing political influence of Mirziyoyeva, a polished operator who is comfortable interacting with foreign dignitaries and other international partners. The presidential decree announced the elimination of 284 staff positions and removed redundancies in other roles in the presidential administration, presidential spokesman Sherzod Asadov said Wednesday. Five deputies have been appointed to “ensure the effective implementation of reforms” in education and the other four areas that Mirziyoyeva’s office will work on, according to Asadov. Uzbekistan also has ministries and other agencies that work in those areas. Mirziyoyeva, 40, had served as a presidential aide before being promoted to head of the presidential administration. She has spoken in support of freedom of speech and women’s rights, issues that have sometimes run up against conservative culture and tight political controls in Uzbekistan. In a recent post on social media, she also noted that Uzbekistan earned a “BB” rating with a stable outlook from the Fitch Ratings agency, describing it as “the first upgrade since 2018!” Mirziyoyev, 67, has been president of Uzbekistan since 2016. He was re-elected in a 2023 vote after a constitutional amendment that reset the number of his terms in office and lengthened presidential terms from five to seven years.

Politics

Kyrgyz Transport Minister Wears Camouflage Following Rebuke by State Security Chief

Kyrgyzstan’s Minister of Transport and Communications, Absattyr Syrgabaev, was seen wearing camouflage during a recent site inspection, days after facing public criticism from Kamchybek Tashiev, head of the State Committee for National Security (GKNB) and deputy chairman of the Cabinet. The incident took place during a working visit to the Jalal-Abad region. Tashiev’s reprimand was sparked by the poor condition of a local maternity hospital. He criticized hospital staff for neglecting basic maintenance, including watering trees and keeping the grounds tidy. “Is it really impossible to water them? Why do I have to come here and talk about this?” Tashiev said during the visit. Turning his attention to Syrgabaev, Tashiev accused the minister of ignoring broader infrastructure responsibilities beyond road construction. He urged Syrgabaev to change his appearance to reflect a more hands-on approach. “Until November, don’t wear a suit. Wear camouflage like me and work until nightfall. In winter, you can go back to suits. Otherwise, you’ll keep showing up in Naryn and Ton in business attire. You have to work! Do you hear me?” Tashiev said at a government meeting in Jalal-Abad. Demands for Constant Work Tashiev also directed harsh criticism at regional governors (akims) and other civil servants, insisting they work “around the clock without days off.” He emphasized that every official must act as a “strong manager.” “Stop working one day and resting two!” he demanded. Shortly after these remarks, Syrgabaev appeared in camouflage during a road reconstruction inspection in the Suusamyr Valley, aligning with Tashiev’s directive. The appearance drew attention from local media outlets. Context of Political Pressure This is not the first time Syrgabaev has come under scrutiny. In May 2025, Tashiev gave him a one-month deadline to complete the Balykchy to Cholpon-Ata highway. While the road was completed on time, unfinished sidewalks led to a “final warning” for the minister. A year earlier, he had been criticized for delays in constructing a bridge over the Ala-Archa River in Bishkek. The backdrop of heightened scrutiny comes amid ongoing corruption investigations. In recent months, authorities have arrested the mayors of Tokmok and Kara-Balta, the deputy mayor of Bishkek, and several contractors. In this climate, Tashiev’s public remarks are increasingly viewed as informal mandates, reflecting his growing influence within Kyrgyzstan’s state apparatus.

Politics

In the Ancient Uzbek City of Termez, Delegates Talk Ties Between Central and South Asia

The Uzbek city of Termez, which lies on the border with Afghanistan and has hosted pilgrims, traders and soldiers over many centuries, is hosting a conference to promote contacts between Central and South Asia. Organized by the Uzbek government, the three-day meeting this week brings together about 200 people from fields including politics, business and research, some of whom have traveled from Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region. The so-called Termez Dialogue on Connectivity, the first in the city, ends on Wednesday. The forum represents a belief that the countries of Central and South Asia can benefit from expanding trade and other contacts with each other, despite periodic security, logistical and other concerns, and even outright conflict such as the recent crisis between India and Pakistan. Militants killed more than two dozen tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir on April 22, setting off fighting between the two nuclear-armed rivals in which dozens more people died. The adversaries reached a cease-fire on May 10. "In the conditions of global instability, a free and constructive dialogue based on respect and equal participation of all parties is more important than ever,” said Eldor Aripov, director of the Institute for Strategic and Interregional Studies, a state research group in Uzbekistan that helped to organize the conference. Aripov said mutual trade turnover between Central and South Asia was more than $5 billion last year, though he characterized the figures as modest because there is more that the regions can do on economic collaboration. He highlighted the importance of the speedy implementation of the Trans-Afghan Corridor construction project, which would provide easier access to Indian Ocean ports for regional countries and more closely connect South Asia to markets in Central Asia, Russia, China and Europe. The Trans-Afghan Corridor project, whose current estimated cost is nearly $5 billion, would constitute a core railway that runs from Termez through Kabul, Afghanistan and onward to Peshawar, Pakistan. Subsequent plans envision the railway as the basis for a broader transport network involving more countries. There are challenges to the project, including security concerns in Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as difficult, mountainous terrain in Afghanistan that would require considerable engineering expertise. While the railway is consistent with Central Asian goals of diversifying trade routes, potential alternatives to the project and geopolitical maneuvers by big powers could complicate prospects for success. “The growing involvement of Central Asian countries in the trans-Afghan transportation sector presents a significant opportunity to fully realize the region’s transit potential, offering substantial economic and geopolitical advantages,” researcher Nargiza Umarova wrote in a March analysis for the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program. “However, this increased engagement may also lead to competition among Central Asian states for new transport initiatives or prompt external rival forces to exploit these opportunities to advance their own interests,” Umarova said.

Politics

India and Pakistan: A Central Asian Perspective on Two Military Giants

The new round of heavy clashes involving India and Pakistan over the disputed region of Kashmir – then settled by a bilateral adherence to a “full-scale ceasefire” – has also been a confrontation involving the players surrounding the two Asian giants. The involvement of some of them took place in plain sight: take the case of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a staunch ally of Pakistan, which sent the country a military ship and a group of fighter jets. Or China, which in recent years has invested tens of billions of dollars in Pakistan under the Belt & Road Initiative, and has become by far the largest supplier of military equipment to Islamabad. Beijing immediately called on both sides to engage in diplomacy. On the Indian front, as reported by recent research on the subject, New Delhi is purchasing weapons from an increasingly varied group of countries, including Russia, France, Israel and the United States. The ceasefire saw direct involvement from Washington, which acted as mediator between the two sides. Given also its geographical proximity to the Indian subcontinent, when it comes to Central Asia it is clear that the region may be called into question in any confrontation between India and Pakistan – or that, at least, would be heavily affected by it. During the strikes carried out by India against Pakistan following the deadly attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir, the Indian media emphasized the strategic role that the military base India allegedly operates in Tajikistan could play in a possible open confrontation with Pakistan. Indian experts pointed out that the base could have given New Delhi the ability to strike Pakistan from the west, seriously compromising Islamabad's air defense capabilities. Furthermore, China was also called into question in India's alleged use of the military outpost, as New Delhi is said to be monitoring China's movements on the northern front using its presence in Tajikistan. This base is Ayni Airbase, a Soviet-era military facility located near the Tajik capital Dushanbe. The facts we know for certain point to an Indian involvement in the Tajik base which appears to have ended around 2015. In 2002, India, in collaboration with Tajikistan and Russia, financed an operation to refurbish the base, investing around $70 million in the project. Among the changes made was the lengthening of the runway, which was intended to ensure that it could be used by aircraft operated by the Indian armed forces. As also stated in the report on Central Asian armed forces drafted by the DC-based The Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs, after a phase in which it seemed that India would play a concrete role in the management of the base, Dushanbe subsequently backtracked, partly due to pressure from Russia. The same path was followed by New Delhi's involvement in the Farkhor airbase, initially used to reach Afghanistan by land by landing Indian cargo planes at the base, located near the border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan. Over the years, the logistical importance of the structure gradually...