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EU CENTRAL ASIA STRATEGY

The “Persian Alliance” and Geopolitical Reconfiguration in Central Asia

By Roman Muzalevsky

August 5 marked the fourth occasion in the last four years that the leaders of the Persian-speaking countries of Iran, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan convened, this time in Tehran, to chart the future of their trilateral cooperation. The meeting, dubbed the “Persian summit,” led to a series of agreements in the area of trade, energy, and transport, reaffirming their joint commitment to bolster regional security. READ MORE

Global crisis should not hamper Millennium goals, Ban warns

By Jennifer Abramsohn

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged world leaders to lift millions of people out of poverty despite of the global economic downturn. But experts doubt the goals can be met by the 2015 deadline. READ MORE

Holding OSCE Summit in Astana very bold and serious initiative - Russia's Permanent Representative to EU V. Chizhov

By Dimash Syzdykov

It is not a secret that in various periods there existed various opinions regarding the effectiveness of the OSCE, and in the recent past its work aroused a lot of sharp remarks. Many experts said it was conditioned by several factors such as ambiguous status of the OSCE member states in the process of geopolitical transformation of the world. Critical moments caused by the conflict of geopolitical interests are still questionable; these problems have been piled up for years. READ MORE

Russia’s mission is Eurasian integration

For several centuries, everyone in Russia – from great minds to cooks – has been discussing the same issue: should Russia look to Europe or Asia? The world’s geopolitical structure has changed in this time, and yet we still have not resolved this issue. Xing Guangcheng, an expert on Russia and a professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, who will be attending the upcoming seventh meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club, shared his views on this question. READ MORE

Turkic Summit In Turkey Concludes With Declaration

The 10th Summit of Heads of State of Turkish Speaking Countries in Istanbul ended after signing of a declaration. READ MORE

The Problem Of Transboundary Rivers Being A Factor Of Strategic Security For Countries

By Arthur Dunn

The international security problems are becoming more relevant due to inevitable exacerbation of issue of the global shortage of fresh water. People are concerned about the possibility of serious international conflicts over water scarcity. It is impossible to completely deny such a possibility. Disputes over water of cross-border rivers are not uncommon, which creates a ground for local collisions. READ MORE

Experts: U.S. Does Not Intend To Give Up Its Interests In Central Asia

Despite Washington's intention to coordinate its actions in Central Asia with Moscow, the U.S. does not intend to give up its influence in the region, experts say. READ MORE

Kyrgyzstan Prepares To Hold Parliamentary Elections After Turbulent Events

By Bruce Pannier

As the official campaign season kicked off for national Kyrgyz elections on September 10, 29 parties were officially in the running for seats in the country's parliament. READ MORE

Global Warming To Boost Economic Power Of Cities In The 'New North' Which Can Unlock Natural Resources

By Niall Firth

Global warming will make cities in northern countries like Canada and Scandinavia the next big global economic powers, a senior academic has predicted. READ MORE

Customs Union Project Shows Moscow's Power Deficit

By Andrea Bonzanni

At the beginning of July, Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus signed a number of protocols establishing a customs union between the three countries. The union, scheduled to be fully operational in January 2012, will create a single common market of about 170 million people and represents the latest of several attempts by Moscow to create an effective trade bloc with its newly independent neighbors since the break-up of the Soviet Union. In addition to the economic ties maintained through the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Russia first committed to a union with Belarus in 1994. READ MORE