Kyrgyzstan Prepares To Hold Parliamentary Elections After Turbulent Events
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
Customs Union Project Shows Moscow's Power Deficit
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
Kyrgyz Officials Poised to Reject OSCE Forces
Kyrgyzstan’s top officials are against the deployment of Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) 52-member Police Advisory Group. The OSCE can still “gracefully” cancel its decision to send the group to Kyrgyzstan, said Security Council Secretary Alik Orozov. READ MORE
The International Factor in the Events in Southern Kyrgyzstan
Most observers at the moment are in the dark as to the causes and the instigators of the riots in the Osh and Jalalabad regions of Kyrgyzstan, which have been ongoing since 10 June. READ MORE
Kazakhstan And The OSCE Can Take The Lead In Kyrgyzstan
This summer's Kyrgyz-Uzbek clashes in southern Kyrgyzstan presented the gravest threat to Central Asian security since the Tajik civil war of the 1990s. Reportedly, about 3,000 people died and more than 300,000 were displaced in the violence. While some stability emerged after the bloodshed and following a national referendum legitimizing the new government, the urgent needs for speedy reconstruction of the destroyed infrastructure and for reconciliation between the two ethnic groups present daunting security challenges. READ MORE
OSCE Votes To Deploy International Advisory Police In Southern Kyrgyzstan
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has agreed to "deploy without delay" a police advisory group to southern Kyrgyzstan. READ MORE
Moscow Using New Customs Union to Extend Influence in Central Asia
Having already been pummeled by rising fuel prices and political instability in recent months, the creation of a Customs Union among Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia threatens to deal yet another economic blow to Kyrgyzstan, and is exerting pressure on Bishkek to decide whether to cast its lot with Moscow or the West. READ MORE
Kyrgyzstan: Positive Developments in the Hydro-Energy Sector
Amid the ongoing instability in southern Kyrgyzstan, and the possibility of renewed violence as the October 10 parliamentary elections approach, the country’s hydro-energy sector shows signs of gradual recovery. The interim government might be able to supply electricity throughout the upcoming cold season and avoid sharp increases in tariffs. Although electricity tariffs will need to be raised eventually, in order to sustain the sector and invest in new hydro-energy projects, the increases could be gradual. READ MORE
Kyrgyz deal a Silk Road turning point
Central Asia arrived at a turning point last weekend far removed from the history of Genghis Khan riding out to conquer the world, as it sought peacekeepers from Europe. Russia, which has provided security to the region for the past century and more is stepping aside - unable or unwilling, and possibly incapable of performing that role anymore. READ MORE
