As relations between Dushanbe and Tashkent have become increasingly strained due to multiple factors, including water resources and energy supplies, Tajikistan is trying to end its reliance on Uzbekistan’s highways and railroads. Tashkent has closed most of the Soviet-era highways linking the countries, and Tajikistan’s cargo transit through Uzbek railroads has suffered frequent interruptions since 2009 (www.news.kob.tj August 10, 2010; Ruzgor.tj March 19, 2010). READ MORE

Kyrgyzstan’s new president-elect Almazbek Atambayev has once again hinted that he wants the US Transit Center at Manas out of Kyrgyzstan by the time coalition forces leave Afghanistan. “In 2014 the United States will have to withdraw its military base from the ‘Manas’ international airport,” Atambayev said on November 1. READ MORE

Azerbaijan is a great friend and a strategic partner of Hungary in the South Caucasus region, Hungarian President Schmitt Pál said in an interview with Trend on the eve of his visit to Azerbaijan. READ MORE

For China is not enough to conquer all of the Far East and Asia’s neighbors. According to the Russian journal Vlast, China seeks to consolidate its influence in the countries which are considered by Moscow as the zones of its influence: Ukraine and Belarus. Beijing started investing to the economies of the above post-soviet countries. READ MORE

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and German Chancellor Angela Merkel launched the Nord Stream gas pipeline on Tuesday, starting delivery of Russian natural gas to Germany bypassing existing transit countries. READ MORE

The European Union does not take its relations with Beijing seriously enough, as evidenced by the unilateral postponement of the 14th EU-China summit and the failure to grant China Market Economy Status, argues Sebastian Bersick. READ MORE

President Dalia Grybauskaitė discussed with the new Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs, the continuity of bilateral cooperation in implementing regional energy and transport projects, and the representation of interests significant for both countries in the European Union and NATO. READ MORE

Anders Fogh Rasmussen is making an historic visit to Libya, the first ever of a NATO Secretary General. The visit marks the conclusion of the NATO-led Operation Unified Protector for Libya, which comes to an end at midnight on October 31, exactly seven months since it began. READ MORE

When the Taliban was ousted in 2001, there were seeds of hope across the country. The people of Afghanistan, weary from their dark past, embarked on a bright venture of nation and state building. They hoped for prosperity, freedom, and peace. The presence, cooperation and support from the international community galvanised this hope. Looking back, I could see a mix of both extraordinary progress and bitter failure. READ MORE

Members of the G20 have lost much of their trust in the eurozone states due to the unexpected political crisis that erupted in Greece this week, writes Deutsche Welle's Henrik Böhme. READ MORE