December round-up...

Even in Bishkek internet access has been a bit of a hassle for the last few weeks ,with pages taking minutes to load... or not. Added to which my attention has been focused on Kyrgyzstan, and I've been continuing to post news roundups over at the New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan Blog in the absence of any other regular bloggers. I am hoping this situation will improve at some point, not least because I'd like to have at least some Kyrgyzstan posts on this blog, seeing as it was one of the main reasons I started it. Still, we shall see.

Anyhow, seeing as there's almost a month's worth of stories to catch up on, best get on with it:

Regional

• Peacejournalism.com has a short piece taking the usual view of Central Asia as an energy supplier (that three letter word beginning in o and ending in l that tends to be equated with $ for many...) and the possibility of energy wars and terrorism. And it's exactly this sort of take on things that will help lead to conflicts as the interests of the developed world and international economics are put before everything else, and the potentially increasingly embittered "losers" in all of this are the populations of the region's republics. And then everyone looks surprised when there are conflicts or extremist movements of various creeds seem to be gaining support and calls for more "democracy"... Look a bit deeper at the cause and try and address that, rather than proposing wholly inadequate symptomatic remedies.
• Global Research.ca takes up the energy theme, this time looking at it from the US point of view in light of China's entry into the region's energy market with the opening of the new joint Sino-Kazakh funded oil pipline running into north west China and the implications for America:

That means closer China-Kazakh-Russia energy cooperation--the nightmare scenario of Washington geopolitical strategists such as Zbigniew Brzezinski or Henry
Kissinger.

Simply put, Washington stands to lose major leverage over the entire strategic Eurasian region with the latest developments. The Kazakh developments also likely has more than a little to do with the fact that the Washington war drums are suddenly beating more loudly against Iran.

• Geopolitics is also the watchword over at Eurasianet, which an article arguing that Kyrgyzstan is the new focus of the Central Asian "contest" for influence (aka slightly more evocatively called the New Great Game...) based on signs that Russia and new best friend Uzbekistan want to try and "roll back" Kyrgyzstan's colour revolution. I'll resist the urge to ask why the hell we're still calling it a revolution, not least because it's all a bit of a moot point - the more important thing is what's currently happening and the future prognosis. More over at the New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan Blog, obviously.
• Moving on to a "new" security issue (as opposed to the more realist terms of those seeing the region in Great Game terms), Eurasia Daily Monitor reports on the Russian offer to help tackle the problem of narcotics in Central Asia and the wider political implications, concluding that the offer is part of a Russian strategy to ensure the CARs, especially Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, understand just how vital the Russian presence is in the region.
• UPI has a report on the new UNDP report on Central Asia and it's conclusions, which make for interesting, and sometimes provocative, reading. My one concern is that organisations like the UN, which traditionally mainly work in partnership with governments, may be underestimating the importance of governmental reform as the basis on which to implement future economic, social, and regional reforms. On the other hand, as Eurasianet notes, the report does in many ways focus on the question of "what if?", and concludes that there are 3 possible future scenarios: "more political repression, some economic liberalization combined with continued strict political control, or gradual political and economic liberalization."
• The BBC takes a look at Central Asia's Islamic Militancy, to quote the title of the piece, from Andijon and in the wider region in terms of the IMU and Hizb-ut-Tahrir, which is now banned throughout the region. As noted at the end of the article, there is often a sense that government repression/restriction of religious groups may be a violation of human rights and in fact have the opposite effect, further radicalising people as they feel compelled to defend their faith and beliefs.
• The end of the year inevitably provokes a plethora of reviews and the like of the year's events. RFE/RL has a reasonably restrained look at some of the major events of 2005 in Central Asia.
• The CIS is suffering yet another bout of Hamlet syndrome with new comments from Russian politician Mikhail Margelov calling the organisation "history", describing it as "amorphous" and having outlived its potential, reports RIA Novosti. PanArmenian takes up the matter as well, asking if the CIS has ceased to exist. Whilst I'm inclined to suspect that rumours of the CIS' demise are still a little premature, if PINR's report on Russia's idea for a new security system in the guise of the CSTO to replace the CIS is anything to go by, it may be looking more likely.
• Whilst the CIS is still in existence, however, debate continues about the whos, hows and wherefores of cooperation with other organisations. NATO is the latest body to attract attention, with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin noting that the CIS needs constructive cooperation in the military-political sphere with western countries, including NATO member states.
• Finally, the American presence in Central Asia comes under the spotlight once more with an RFE/RL article asking what the US strategy for bases in the former Soviet bloc is. Worth a read.

Kazakhstan

• Kazakhstan can do little wrong, it appear at the moment, even after shortcomings of the presidential elections at the beginning of the month (to be honest, most of the issues concerned the pre-election period, rather than the elections per se), with many touted the republic as the region's new Great Hope. Very much in this vein is Vladimir Socor's article on Moldova.org, entitled "A Model for Central Asia".
• Overall, the fallout from the elections, which Nazarbaev won with what might be politely described as a landslide, has been very moderate. The CIS observer mission's appraisal was inevitably very upbeat, with CIS Executive Secretary Vladimir Rushailo commenting that Kazakhstan "has passed a grand political exam" reports KazInform, whilst NewsfromRussia has a piece on US calls for charges of election fraud to be investigated, and the Scotsman notes that some monitors were less than happy with the standards of the elections. The Christian Science Monitor also weighs in with an article examining America's "soft power" in the republic that may at least partially explain current upbeat atitudes towards Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, Central Asia - Caucasus Analyst poses the $64,000 question with an article entitled "Could Kazakhstan Move Beyond Electoral Authoritarianism?" - I spot that a new adjective syndrome is affecting use of the word "authoritarianism"...
• Mondoshoes has an interesting look at the reasons for Nazarbaev's 91% victory, arguing that it's a question of economics more than anything.
• KazInform reports that Kazakhstan's entry into the WTO has been discussed at a round table meeting with a view to working out what the republic's negotiating terms are.
• Meanwhile Kazakhstan's candidacy for the OSCE Chairmanship in 2009 has apparently gained the support of the EU.
• December 16 was Independence Day in Kazakhstan, as KazInform notes.
• The web site Monday Morning takes a quick look at the question of ethnicity in Kazakhstan, concluding with the slightly startling remark from one analyst that "“We need very strict immigration rules. ... We have to guard carefully, because otherwise, before you know it, we’d all be just Chinese”.

Tajikistan

• Russian-Uzbek relations seem to be causing some concern in Tajikistan, where there are fears that promised Russian investment in Tajikistan in the form of RusAl (Russian Aluminium) may suffer as a result of improved Russian-Uzbek relations. As RFE/RL notes, problems with infrastructure, levels of technology and pollution may all hinder Tajik-Russian cooperation, despite reassurances from RusAl's Chairman, Oleg Deripaska, to the contrary.
• Relief Web has a report entitled "Water in Tajikistan: a curse and a blessing" examining problems of erosion and agricultural needs for water.
• RFE/RL has a brief interview with George Soros on Tajikistan's millenium goals, noting that more devopment of civil society, as well as society in general, is required.
• AlertNet reports that more than 17 people were killed by mines in 2005, despite ongoing demining efforts in the republic, which have now drawn to a close for the year as winter draws in.
• IRIN reports that there was a sharp rise in arrests for human trafficking offences in Tajikistan this year, with more than 230 crimes being registered compared to around 150 in 2004.
• More positively, Relief Web has a short article on the changes that women in the republic are facilitating, not least through micro-credits and setting up NGOs.

Turkmenistan

• NewsCentralAsia reports that a new law on migration has been passed, which is designed to regulate all aspects of migration in the republic and which requires the creation of a national database for the population of Turkmenistan that would also be used for taxation, insurance and integration and analysis of information about the population of the country, and which will require the issuance of new identity cards.
• Turkmenistan.ru reports that Vladimir Putin called President Niyazov on December 12 to congratulate him on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of Turkmenistan's official neutrality. RIA Novosti also notes that on December 21 the republic celebrated 20 years of Turkmenbashi's rule. Congratulations...
• Neutrality does not prevent economic cooperation however, as news of China's offer of a considerable aid package to the republic shows (NewsCentralAsia). One word for the motivation behind the offer: oil...
• One of the slightly more odd (and this is a very relative term where Turkmenbashi is concerned) stories recently has been the plan to build a zoo in the middle of the desert and stock it with a wide range of animals... including penguins. Oh yes, despite the somewhat warm climate, Turkmenbashi has decreed that penguins must be included in the zoo due to his belief that penguins must be saved from extinction which will be caused by them starving to death as a result of global warming. Different planet...
• NewsCentralAsia reports that the UNHCR has celebrated 10 years of working in the republic. Much kudos to their staff for managing to keep functioning in a country with a truly crackpot regime.

Uzbekistan

• Economic migrants have made it onto the news radar, with a RFE/RL report on the harsh conditions endured by illegal Uzbek migrants in neighbouring republics in search of a better (but still pretty miserly) wage.
• Meanwhile IRIN reports on the continuance of forced labour in Uzbekistan's cotton industry, which apparently uses government employees and schoolchildren to provide sufficient manpower (or more accurately maybe, womenpower).
• On a lighter note is news that Uzbekistan's Jews will soon be able to enjoy locally-produced kosher jam thanks to a new Uzbek-Israeli company called Spartak.
• Gazeta.kz has an interesting article entitled "Uzbekistan as a subject of geopolitical games" that argues Karimov's recent reorientation towards Russia can be counted as a tactical victory, at least in the short term.

Reports, newswraps, publications, etc.

• KazInform reports on the publication of a new book by Kazakh scholar Marat Shaikhutdinov, a collection of articles somewhat Prussianly entitled Geopolitics, globalistics and national security theory: methodological and applied aspects.
• The latest issue of Central Asia - Causasus Analyst (Nov 30, 2005) is available for download in pdf format here.
• RFE/RL Central Asia Reports Vol. 5, No. 46 (December 8), Vol. 5, No. 47 (December 16), Vol. 5, No. 48 (December 22) are available. The full 2005 archive is here.
• AlertNet's Weekly Central Asia Newswrap from December 9 is here, and December 16 here.
• IWPR's Reporting Central Asia No. 425, No. 426, No. 427 (December 17), No. 428 (December 23) are available (technically speaking, but the IWPR site appears to be down at the moment, hence no links to individual reports).
• Central Asia and the Caucasus, 6 (36) will be published shortly. More details here.

4 hours and 2 Explorer crashes later, over and out from Bishkek for the time being. I'll be posting a Kyrgyzstan round up over at New Eurasia in the next couple of days.

Mammoth CA minus KGZ catch-up

Been a little slack for a couple of weeks on the broader Central Asian/CIS front with attention being more Kyrgyzstan-focused over at New Eurasia. Anyhow, time for a catch-up from the last couple of weeks:

Regional

• Caucaz.com has an interview with Gael Raballand, an economist at the World Bank, looking at economic marginalisation in the region, which, in Raballand's opinion, started in the C17.
• The Korea Times is obviously going on the Russian maxim of "povtorenie - mat' uchenie" (repetition is the mother of learning) with an article on the Great Game in Central Asia... Sigh. As one interviewee put it to me, how can it be a game when all the players are playing different games with different aims?! Incidentally, the BBC also jumps on the bandwagon with an article entitled "Struggle for influence in Central Asia".
• The BBC has an article on growing herion use in the Central Asian republics, noting that this is a new trend to add to the trafficking of narcotics through the region.
• Iran's Cultural Heritage News Agency has a quick run down on tourism in Muslim Central Asia - interestingly referring to the CARs as countries of the Middle East and emphasising the region's cultural ties to Persian and Turkish culture.
• Another article from the BBC looks at the Russian populations of the Central Asian republics under the title "Russians left behind in Central Asia" and concluding the remaining Russian populations are a useful influence in helping to ensure secular forms of government in the region.
• Georgia has continued to cause waves in the CIS with its threats to leave the Commonwealth. Russian and Abkhazian MPs commented on Georgia's anti-CIS position, with some noting the potential economic damage to Georgia, and Boris Gryslov concluding that the Georgian parliament's decision to leave the CIS (Nov 23) was remeniscent of "the action of a slow-witted child". However, the People's Daily quoted the Georgian Prime Minister as denying the country would leave the CIS (Nov 25) and that the decision was only to start discussing the possibility, rather than actually taking a decision on the matter. Meanwhile, Interfax notes that the Georgian State Minister for Separatist Conflicts has attempted to pour oil on troubled waters with comments that any possible secession will not impact on Russian peacekeeping operations in the region. But, just to keep everyone on their toes, the Georgian Parliamentary speaker said on November 28 that secession was still a possibility reported RIA Novosti. Better than a Brazilian soap opera...
• The Globalist weighs in with a look at the historical Silk Road, asking if it was/is just a romantic deception?
• KazInform reports that the CSTO has proposed forming a Eurasian advisory council for countering terrorism and other threats, arguing that a unified plan of action has long been required.
• Pravda.ru has a piece arguing that Russia must minimise US influence in Central Asia and protect the interests of the 6-odd million ethnic Russians still living in the region.
• HIV/AIDS hits the news for once with the annual World AIDS Day - and a report from China View that begins to hint at the potential scale of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Central Asia, even if official figures continue to be relatively low.
• Finally, the New York Times has an article on the apparent harassment of US-funded pro-democracy groups and NGOs in Central Asia and Russia by local governments and Russia.

Kazakhstan

• Today is election day, with people voting for the next president - most likely Nursultan Nazarbaev again by all accounts. KazInform reported that before 10.00am 21,241 people had already cast their votes. The New Eurasia Kazakhstan Blog will undoubtedly be covering events, and KZblog was already hot on the trail yesterday. The Khaleej Times also takes a look at this "democratic" election.
• Can't quite get rid of the "colour revolution" theme, one way or the other - Eurasia Daily Monitor leads with a piece entitled "Fearing Color Revolutions to be Contagious, Kazakhstan Shuts Border with Kyrgyzstan". Meanwhile, Eurasianet is not convinced that it is all plain sailing for Nazarbaev to get his next term in the bag, and AP reports on the possibility of demonstrations in the wake of the elections.
• In terms of positive pronouncements over the last few weeks, Kazakhstan is clearly doing well on the path to a bright and prosperous future: RIA Novosti reported that Nazarbaev has said that the republic will join the world's 50 top states in the near future (top 50 for what?) citing rapid economic improvements; progress towards democracy is moving on apace with Kazakhstan's signing of a Law on Ratification of the International Pact on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, notes KazInform; agrimarket notes that Kazakhstan's Prime Minister announced that the country should be ready to join the WTO in the first half of 2006 - a slight set back, seeing as the end of 2005 was the original date set, but still; Nazarbaev has called for Kazakhstan to play a key role in regional security reports RIA Novosti, which notes in the same report that the President is supporting the promotion of Russian in the republic; a border treaty with Russia was ratified by the Russian Duma after 5 years of negotiations; and finally, continuing this whirlwind of proactivism, is the a proposed pact on Caspian Sea regional stability. Impressive bureaucratic activity...
• The BBC has an article on the position of women in the republic, noting the glass ceiling that seems to prevent women rising to high, particularly in politics.
• The Borat controversy continues to cause a reaction, as the mediachannel notes that the Kazakh government took out a 4-page advertising spread in the New York Times, no doubt to correct the impression that Borat's representation of the country is accurate. Can't wait to see what happens when Borat the Movie is released (or will it get censored for causing international offence?!).
• And on a welcome non-political, non-controversial theme, the BBC reports on efforts to rejuvenate Almaty apples.

Tajikistan

• IWPR has an article on the state of the mental health system in Tajikistan in light of increasing perceptions amongst residents that psychiatric illness has become increasingly prevalent and that the authorities are doing little or nothing about the problem. But, as IWPR asks, is this any more than perception and prejudice?
• IRIN reports that Tajik border guards recently seized 122kg of heroin from a courier coming in from Afghanistan.

Turkmenistan

• Turkmeno-German relations seem to be on a positive footing if a report from NewsCentralAsia is anything to judge by, not least comment by President Niyazov that Mercedeces is the preferred car in Turkmenistan for public service needs.
• Seattlepi reports that Turkmenistan is to sign a deal with China to start supplying gas and on the joint development of gas fields.

Uzbekistan

• Craig Murray might well be permittted a "I told you so moment" or six, as the Guardian notes in an article entitled "Uzbekistan looks east for news friends".
• Meanwhile the ever-reliable and non-sensationalist MosNews (erhem) reports that Russian troops could take over the newly-vacated K2 airbase according to a "Moscow-based military source". It is worth noting that even this source admits that no final decision has been taken yet, so don't hold your breath...
• The tit-for-tat between the Uzbek authorities and the European Union continues - the UK has suspended visa services in Tashkent after local authorities cut security around the embassy reports Lahore's the Daily Times. Citizens seeking visas have been advised to try Almaty or Moscow.
• AlertNet reports on the start of a major campaign against HIV/AIDS aimed at halting its rapid spread in Uzbekistan.

Reports, newswraps, etc.

• RFE/RL Central Asia Report Vol. 5, No. 44, (28 Nov 2005 - delayed from 17 Nov) looks at efforts by leaders to hold on to power, the sentencing of Andijan suspects, and the fate of Andijan refugees in Romania.
• RFE/RL Central Asia Report Vol. 5, No. 45, (30 Nov 2005 - delayed from Nov 24) has articles on Uzbekistan between east and west and a look at the upcoming Kazakh presidential elections.
• AlertNet Central Asia Weekly Newswrap (Nov 25).
• AlertNet Central Asia Weekly Newswrap (Dec 2).
• IWPR Reporting Central Asia No. 423 (Nov 25) - Alledged media "distortions" in Kyrgyzstan, vetting in Turkmenistan, attitudes to tourist development in Dushanbe.
• IWPR Reporting Central Asia No. 424 part (Nov 29) - All talk but no revolutionary action in Kazakhstan, media bias in the Kazakh presidential elections and e-voting controversy, Kazakh border closures with Kyrgyzstan, the fate of the Constitutional Court in Kyrgyzstan, progress towards political parties in Kyrgyzstan, passport chaos in Tajikistan.

News Catch-up

Regional

• Just when it looked like debate over the CIS had died down a little, it comes back with a vengeance. This time the issue has been brought up by the Georgian opposition, who have called for Georgia to quit to CIS and called it a "Russian appendage". The Speaker of the Georgian parliament said that "certain circles in Russia" showed an unwillingness to develop a constructive dialogue with Georgia, reports RFE/RL.
• More positively for the CIS, KazInform reports that 2006 has been declared Year of the CIS and is also the 100th anniversary of the Russian State Duma. According to Sergei Mironov, 2006 is a year of realization of scaled tasks, set by the interstate programs and model legislation plans, apparently, whatever that means in non-bureaucratese.
• A certain Vladimir Putin has written an article published in Japan's Asahi entitled "Russia turns towards wider Asian cooperation" that looks at Russia's plans to develop its economic role in the region.

Kazakhstan

• With election day drawing near, a certain amount of controversy was probably inevitable, as Gazeta.kz's article on disagreement between the Central Elections Commission and the ODIHR over the apparent lack of opposition parties in election committees shows. Nevertheless, official pronouncements remain unabashedly positive, both regarding the democratic nature of the elections and relations with the OSCE and ODIHR.
• Oil fever looks to be rising with news that a pipeline between China and Kazakhstan has been completed, reports The Star. The pipeline is 1000 km long and is expected to transport 140 million barrels of oil to China annually. China's The People's Daily also notes that Russia is keen not to lose out, with plans to use at least part of the pipeline to export oil to China.
• Kazakhstan has also been busy consolidating bilateral relations with Ukraine, as ForUm reports, noting that the 2 heads of state signed a two-year action plan and joint declaration last week. As part of this plan, Kazakhstan has bought 7 Ukrainian AN-148 aircraft and cooperation in the energy sector is currently being described as "very promising".
• Another target of Kazakh bilateral relations is Georgia, according to a report from PrimeNews that Kazakhstan is ready to supply Georgia with 2 milliards cubic meters of gas at a reduced price from the next year - subject to being able to coordinate plans with Russia's Gazprom.
• Slightly more surreal is a report that Portugal is apparently intending to strengthen cooperation with Kazakhstan, but then again, why not?
• The Borat Scandal is continuing apace, reports the Guardian (see Registan for more details), who have also helpfully provided a useful beginner's guide to Kazakhstan. National pride is a sensitive thing...
• Air Astana has suspended all flights to Turkey after getting news that Turkish authorities have ordered all arriving Kazakh planes to be detained to ensure repayment of a Kazakh government debt. BAE Systems, who own 49% of the company (the Kazakh government owns the other 51%, unfortunately) cannot be impressed...

Kyrgyzstan

• Head over to the New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan Blog for a quick catch up with events here in Kyrgyzstan.

Turkmenistan

• Lots of outrage from the Turkmen government and demands for apologies, reports NewsCentralAsia, due to references by two media outlets to an "Islamic Movement of Turkmenistan", which, the Turkmen government assures us, categorically does not exist, and has been thought up to discredit Turkmenistan.
• I'm sure the Turkmen authorities will be just as outraged by a BBC report on the state of healthcare in the republic - but not, unfortunately, for the right reasons. It makes for very grim reading (having said that, it turns out here in Kyrgyzstan I have to pay USD 80 up front if I need an ambulance and they won't dispatch one until I cough up - but at least Kyrgyzstan has ambulances I guess).
• Keeping up the ourage factor is Reporters Without Borders, who have declared Turkmenistan an "enemy of the internet" along with China and Iran according to an RFE/RL report.
• Finally, Turkmenistan.ru reports that the new amended Constitution will come into effect on January 1, 2006.

Uzbekistan

• The moral outrage continues in Uzbekistan with World War 4 report looking at the conclusion of the Andijan "show trial" and the signing of a defence pact with Russia (Registan has a post on this as well). New Zealand's Herald takes a quick look at the response to the trial and the mood international condemnation - which may, according to Registan, result in further sanctions against Uzbekistan. Outrage all round...
• Reuters reports that despite objections, the US has paid up $23 million for the use of the K2 base, despite previous plans to delay payment for a year. The US to remaining upbeat about the payment:

But Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona told the Senate last month,
"Paying our bills is important, but more important is America standing up for
itself, avoiding the misimpression that we overlook massacres and avoiding cash
transfers to the treasury of a dictator just months after he permanently evicts
American soldiers from his country."

Reports, newswraps, etc.

• IWPR's Reporting Central Asia No. 419 part 2 (Nov 12) has articles on continuing problems with land squatters in Bishkek and on Tajikistan's disappearing opposition; No. 420 (Nov 15) reports on murdered deputy Bayaman Erkinbaev's brother's protest by self-immolation, and concerns that President Bakiev may be attempting to consolidate his power via constitutional reform; No. 421 (Nov 18) has articles on Turkmenbashi's profitable gas dealings, the increasing problems Orthodox Christians face in Turkmenistan, and the crippling cost of funeral wakes in Kyrgyzstan.
• AlertNet's Central Asia Weekly Newswrap (Nov 18) is available.

Brief news catchup

A pretty quiet week for breaking stories, so a very quick catchup this week. It looks like Kyrgyzstani news is going to stay over at the New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan Blog for some time yet, if not permanently, which is a bit of a change of plan as this blog was originally quite Kyrgyzstan-biased. Still, can x-post and may get on to a more comment and analysis style, as Registan does. So, here we go:

Regional

• Stability and security are the name of the game in Central Asia from Iran's point of view, reports IranMania, noting that such a situation is in Iran's national security interests and citing the US as an impediment to regional integration and stability.
• Meanwhile the US is increasingly avoiding all talk of games, as Eurasianet's article on General John Abizaid's, Chief of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), visit to Kazakhstan illustrates.
• KazInform takes a look at the economic future of Central Asia from the perspective of "bigger" Asia, noting the increasing interest in the region from east Asian countries.

Kazakhstan

• KazInform reports that the Kazakh Minister for Information, Culture and Sport, Yesetjan Kosubayev, held talks with the director of the OSCE observer mission last week, assuring the OSCE that press freedom is being observed and any infringements in press coverage in the pre-election campaigns will be fully investigated.
• Unsurprisingly, with a little under a month to go before polling day, Eurasia Daily Monitor reports that incumbent president Nursultan Nazarbaev is the clear favourite to win, citing a poll at the end of October according to which 67% of the population said they would vote for Nazarbaev.
• RIA Novosti reports that Kazakhstan is planning to sign a partnership action plan with NATO in the near future according to officials from the Kazakh Ministry of Defence.

Kyrgyzstan

• News and views over at New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan.

Turkmenistan

• NewsCentralAsia has posted a presentation by Khushgeldy Babayev, Chairman of Turkmenistan President’s State Enterprise for the Caspian Sea, on Turkmenistan's Caspian Sector - lots of technical detail and a look at what different companies are doing in the sector.
• NewsCentralAsia also notes that the Iranian Foreign Minister visited the republic last week to discuss a wide range of issues.
• Less positively, Forum 18 reports on 2 Protestants and a Hare Krishna believer being prevented from leaving Turkmenistan (horribly Kafka-esque).

Uyghur

• Radio Free Asia reports that the editor of the Kashgar Literature Journal, Korash Huseyin, has been sentenced to a three-year jail term for publishing a story, "Wild Pigeon", that was seen as inciting Uyghur separatism. The author of the tale is already seriving a ten-year prison term. The text of the story in question is also available on the site.

Uzbekistan

• Human Rights First have released a report, Karimov's War: Human Rights Defenders and Counterterrorism in Uzbekistan (pdf version) that as well as being highly critical of the Uzbek regime's oppresive approach, also calls on the international community to stop "letting Uzbekistan get away with murder".

Newsletters, reports, etc.

• RFE/RL Central Asia Report Vol. 5 No. 43 (Nov 10) is available.
• IWPR's Reporting Central Asia No. 418 and 419 are available.
• AlertNet's latest Central Asia Weekly Newswrap (Nov 11) is available.

CA news catch-up at last

Bit of a bitty week, all things considered. For news from Uzbekistan, check out Registan.net.

Regional

• The US has apparently got a strategy for Central Asia based on security (an ever-illusive term), energy and regional economic cooperation, according to Daniel Fried, assistant secretary of state for Europe and Eurasia. The report on Washington File notes that Kazakhstan is seen as the potential new regional leader, subject to the results of the forthcoming presidential elections, and the US remains optimistic regarding Kyrgyzstan's prospects:

“We believe Kyrgyzstan stands on the threshold of a new era of stability,
provided its leaders can consolidate the steps toward democracy emerging from
last March’s ‘Tulip Revolution..."

• Meanwhile the precise balance on the US strategy is the subject of discussion over at Voice of America, noting the closely linked nature of the US's pro-democracy and energy policies in the region.
• Continuing revolution fever is a BBC article on changes in former Soviet republics over the last year or so that argues optimistically (and even after Andijan) for the continuing rise of people power in the republics. On a similar theme, Monsters and Critics has an article wondering how long Central Asia's remaing "strong men" can last.

Kazakhstan

• Gazeta.kz has an interesting article entitled "A Loud Echo of the Kyrgyz Revolution" arguing that Kazakhstan has underestimated the influence of Bishkek and Tashkent have on events in Kazakhstan, focusing instead on the influence of international actors such as Russia, the US and China, and considering the possible economic effects of further unrest in Kyrgyzstan.
• Meanwhile Russian expert Aleksei Malashenko reckons that a Colour Revolution in Kazakhstan is unfeasible, according to Gazeta.kz, partly on semantic grounds and partly because of economic development. I'm tempted to reserve judgement at the moment.
• Not that Kazakhstan had been discussed much as a potential new host for a US base, but nonetheless the US has helpfully issued a statement denying any plans to locate a new base in the republic. So there you go...

Kyrgyzstan

• Getting people blogging on the New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan Blog is proving slow going (if you want to join the blog team, drop me a line!), so I'm continuing to post Kyrgyzstani news over there for the time being.

Tajikistan

• Igor Rotar, writing for Eurasia Daily Monitor, reports on the extremist religious organization Bayat and allegations of its continuing activity in Isfarinsky district (Ferghana Valley) of the republic.
• Meanwhile Tajikistan's Islamic Party is unhappy with a ban on wearing headscarves in secular schools in the country, calling it unacceptable. The ban was announced by the Education Minister on October 19 in the interests of ensuring the secularity of schools, reports the Iranian Quran News Agency.

Reports, newsletters, etc.

• AlertNet's Central Asia Weekly Newswrap (Nov 4) is available.
• RFE/RL's Central Asia Report Vol 5, No. 42 (Nov 3) is available.
• IWPR's Reporting Central Asia No. 418 is available.

CA minus KGZ round up

Short on time, so moving straight on.

Regional

• Great Game denials in an article in the Montery Herald, quoting Daniel Fried as saying that the US does "not look at Central Asia as an object in a Great Game", before somewhat predictably concluding that nonetheless the Great Game is in progress because Russia and China started it... Children...
• RFE/RL continues in the same vein asking if the SCO "could challenge the might of the world's only superpower -- if only in the vast landlocked spaces of Central Asia?" Sounds like a plot for a bad sci-fi film, but still, if the analysts keep on about this Great Game, surely it exists (?) - the Ukrainian proverb that if you call someone a pig often enough he'll go "oink" eventually springs to mind. Or in more academic terms, it's all about threat constructions. Your call.
• On the other hand, RFE/RL sees Iranian and Turkish efforts to assert some influence in the Central Asian region as far less successful, noting that the outlook for geostrategic influence on the Stans looks limited from these two countries' standpoint.
• No doubt adding fuel to the fire of analysts' feverish minds will be a report from Interfax China that Beijing is hoping to broaden SCO cooperation with other regional structures.
• Daniel Fried has also stated that the US is not going to give up its democratic mission in the region (and mission in an almost religious sense is the key word here), with Fried stating that "I can’t look those people in the eye and say, ‘Democracy isn’t for you and isn’t for your country".
• Finally on the regional level, Gazeta.kz takes another look at the issue of US bases in the Central Asian region and the isues involved.

Kazakhstan

• Apparently the CIS is to found a "Club of Sages" (comic book title if ever I heard one) and Kazakhstan has nominated Tokmuhamed Sadykov, head of the Kazakh National Pedagogic Institute named after Abai to be a member, reports Gazeta.kz.
  

Kyrgyzstan

• Continuing protests this week - head on over to the New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan Blog for a full round-up of the week's news.

Tajikistan

• Tajikistan is the venue for the next meeting of the SCO in the second half of 2006, reports China's The People's Daily.

Turkmenistan

• Good week for Turkmenistan PR-wise, with Vladimir Zhirinovsky's comments that he was "pleasantly surprised" by what he saw during his visit to the republic. Zhirinovsky, who is known in Russia for his colourful and forthright views on various matters, headed a Russian delegation to Ashgabat to celebrate independence day in Turkmenistan, reports NewsCentralAsia.

Uzbekistan

• Karimov must have decided that no publicity is bad publicity, judging by the continuing litany of complaints against his regime. Human Rights first have added their voice, calling for the immediate release of Mukhtabar Tojibaeva, who was arrested earlier this month.
• The aftermath of Andijon rumbles on with a report from the Guardian that prosecutors are seeking considerable prison terms for the men on trial for their alleged participation and membership of Islamic extremist groups.
• The Guardian also repors that the BBC World Service is also shutting up shop in the republic for at least 6 months, citing harrassment from local officials.
• Meanwhile away from human rights, Eurasia Daily Monitor reports on Russian efforts to establish a strategic partnership with Uzbekistan.

Reports, publications, etc.

• The latest issue (Oct 19) of the Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst is available for download here (pdf).
• IWPR's Reporting Central Asia No. 416 and 417 part 1 are available, and include articles on the political row in Kyrgyzstan and subsequent crisis in the republic, as well as a report on a revolt in a Tajik prison.

Pro- and Anti-Kulov Demonstrations

For the background on these protests, head on over to the New Eurasia Kyrgyzstan Blog.

So, on the one side, the anti-Kulov protestors, who have set up camp opposite the Zhogorku Kenesh with a number of yurts in the shadow of Lenin...

And who are blaming Kulov for the murder of Tynchbek Akmatbaev, accusing him of being in cahoots with the leaders of organised crime and demanding his resignation.

Meanwhile at the pro-Kulov rally, his supporters called on Kulov to stay and on the authorities to defend the Prime Minister.