https://eurasianet.org/trump-brokers-potentially-game-changing-deal-with-armenia-azerbaijan
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/07/us-deal-armenia-azerbaijan-00499285
I must say if this deal holds and comes to fruition, it will be quite the feather in Donald Trump's cap. Or if it goes wrong, it may be viewed by historians in terms of folly and provocation.
https://eurasianet.org/us-strikes-mineral-deals-with-uzbekistan-tashkent-report
https://eurasianet.org/kyrgyz-pm-gets-polite-brush-off-by-us-business-executives
https://www.eurasiantimes.com/china-intrudes-in-russias-backyard-as-moscow/
https://www.asianews.it/news-en/Central-Asia-and-Beijing-after-the-Astana-summit-63374.html
https://eurasianet.org/united-states-and-russia-angling-for-influence-in-turkmenistan
https://eurasianet.org/rumors-of-chinese-land-deals-spark-public-unease-in-uzbekistan
As Ankara seeks to work with Azerbaijan in the creation of a new energy and trade corridor connected to Central Asia, the other big players are also quite active and the region is astir.
There's so much that could be said right now about events in the Middle East and the conflict between Israel and Iran and the potential for a wider war including the United States and others.
For my part I think about scenarios in which the war could go sideways or the aftermath of a regime collapse.
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/syria-assad-hts-china-future/
Foreign Policy magazine and The Economist have articles on this topic but due to firewalls there's little point in linking them.
Instead I'm linking this piece from (of all places) The Atlantic Council. It's biased to be sure (and even misleading at points) but given that it's readership is a little more high-brow, it's intelligent and touches on things that an AP story, let alone something from CNN or CBS wouldn't even address.
https://eurasianet.org/kyrgyzstan-authorities-seek-expanded-powers-to-regulate-religious-affairs
This new set of laws is in keeping with everything we've come to expect with the authoritarian states of Central Asia which emerged with the fall of the Soviet Union. The Eurasianet article is incorrect. Kyrgyzstan is not a secular society at all, but rather one in which Islam is the officially favoured religion with other traditional groups (such as Eastern Orthodoxy) tolerated.
https://www.asianews.it/news-en/The-Turanian-World-advance-in-Central-Asia-60912.html
Neo-Ottomanism is not exactly the same as Pan-Turkism but the concepts can and often do overlap. Neo-Ottomanism is about leveraging Ankara's placement, the fact that Türkiye straddles Europe, the Caucasus, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean. Via the Black Sea and the Caucasus it is able to access the Turkish populations of Central Asia - and this is where the Pan-Turkism comes in. Ankara is able to exert itself culturally into the region and it's natural that economic and other diplomatic relations would ensue.
https://eurasianet.org/china-kyrgyzstan-uzbekistan-railway-project-gets-off-the-ground
The key statement this article is the reference to the Trans-Afghan corridor. This railroad and its relationship to the larger question of Central Asian infrastructure represents a strategic defeat for the US Empire.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0j4x4hy
Within moments of turning on this BBC podcast I knew it was going to be a case of spin. There was from the onset a dishonest narrative about the origins of ISIS and the panel failed to probe or explain how the group grew out of al Qaeda and how its vision is different - the more extreme nature of the group is found in its apocalyptic understanding of the world.
Investment is always viewed through the lens of economic
legitimacy – both as a means and an end. But it also needs to be understood that
a flood of money invariably generates corruption.
This reporting relies on Forum 18 which as I contended last
year is problematic, as the organisation is a little too cozy with the European
Establishment. That said, (as with the Mariupol pastor story from October 2022),
this is not to say the story isn't true. It's more of a warning to be sceptical
of the source and to realize that despite their claims – they're not neutral or
apolitical observers.
The US media and Washington's political mouthpieces can
downplay this question all they want but the discussions are happening and at a
greater pace than seen before.
https://eurasianet.org/blinken-strikes-reassuring-tone-in-dialogue-with-central-asian-partners
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken made a recent trip to
Central Asia and despite attempts by Western media to spin the visit in a
positive light – it is being almost universally acknowledged as a failure. The
Central Asian states refuse to back US-sponsored resolutions in the UN that
would condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine and they clearly rejected Blinken's
overtures – recognizing them for what they are, an attempt at warmongering.
https://thediplomat.com/2021/06/dont-expect-pakistan-to-host-us-military-bases/
In some respects this is a small story and received little
attention but it deserves a second look. The Taliban has protested regarding US
drone strikes in Afghanistan and particularly the targeted killing of al Qaeda
leader Ayman al-Zawahiri. They are of course upset with Washington but the real
target of their accusations and perhaps their ire is Pakistan. The Taliban
accuses Islamabad of hosting US drones or at the very least allowing them to
strike from its airspace.
The longstanding conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has flared up and dozens are dead as a result of skirmishes. The evidence suggests this latest round of violence was instigated by Baku as Armenia is all but broken and still recovering from its serious defeat in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War. It is highly unlikely that they would pick a fight at this time – a point even Western academics and commentators are willing to concede.
https://journal-neo.org/2021/10/14/erdogan-rushes-to-form-a-broad-coalition-of-pro-turkish-forces/
Turkey is still attempting to put its stamp on Central Asia.
As expected with Erdogan, his programme is focused on Pan-Turkism with a veneer
of Islam.
https://www.thedefensepost.com/2021/08/05/india-indigenous-aircraft-carrier/
Indian tanks have been seen on maneuvers less than thirty
miles from the Chinese border in Ladakh. While the Ladakh-Tibet border does not
represent an existential threat to Beijing, the area has been contentious since
the two modern nations were formed in the 1940's. China doesn't want to see any
kind of turmoil or trouble on the Tibet border – but you can be sure Washington
is doing all it can to encourage India to make that trouble.
It is noteworthy that as of 2020 the al Qaeda affiliated East
Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) is no longer on the US terror list and its
political and intellectual leadership is based in the United States.
China is certainly very concerned about the ETIM setting up
shop in Afghanistan, and Beijing is trying to reach out to the Taliban for this
reason among others. One can be certain that China will wish to extend its Belt
and Road Initiative (OBOR) into Afghanistan but there's also the fear that
Afghanistan will become a base or harbour for militants.
But there's another concern and it's one that I've been
talking about for some time – and one I'm starting to become more convinced of.
http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Persecution-of-Tajik-Islamists-53398.html
This is a strange story coming from a Catholic news agency.
Why is a conservative Catholic news network taking what is essentially a
Pro-Islamist position?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57304094
Kenya was the scene of a previous Turkish intelligence (MIT)
operation in the late 1990's when (with the help of the CIA) the head of the
PKK was captured. This time it's unclear if Nairobi was a willing participant
in the MIT operation though it seems unlikely that Turkey would have risked the
international scandal to capture someone that frankly is not exactly a
high-value target.
Erdogan's AKP is continuing its campaign against the Gülenist
movement. They have been unable to get their hands on Fethullah Gülen himself
who has lived in the Pennsylvania Poconos since 1999.*
