EurasiaNet
Friday, October 3, 2014 - 07:29
At PEN International there is a tradition: During the organization’s general assemblies, empty chairs are left prominently vacant as a reminder of imprisoned writers and journalists around the world. This year, for the free expression watchdog’s 80th anniversary – marked this week in Kyrgyzstan’s capital, Bishkek – three empty chairs reminded the assembly of three Central Asian men imprisoned for their writings and activism: Azimjon Askarov from Kyrgyzstan, Ilham Tohti from China and Vladimir Kozlov from Kazakhstan.
Friday, October 3, 2014 - 06:26
The biggest headline to come out of the weekend's Caspian Sea summit in Astrakhan, Russia, was that the five countries along the sea agreed to prevent any outside military presence from the sea. This has been a longstanding goal of the sea's two biggest powers, Russia and Iran, the result of worries that the U.S. and/or NATO would somehow gain a military foothold on the sea via security cooperation programs with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, or Turkmenistan.
Thursday, October 2, 2014 - 06:39
Turkey has denied claims from a German expert that the country is secretly developing a nuclear weapons program. The claim, made by Hans Ruhle in the German newspaper Die Welt, is based on circumstantial evidence. But Ruhle, a former senior German defense ministry and NATO official, writes in the piece that Western intelligence circles are "largely in agreement about it."
Tuesday, September 30, 2014 - 07:04
A Georgian armored vehicle is a finalist in a tender for the Saudi Arabian military, potentially marking a big step forward for Georgia's young arms industry.
Monday, September 29, 2014 - 06:06
The presidents of the five countries on the Caspian Sea are meeting in Astrakhan, Russia, on Sunday and will agree to "prevent" the military presence of non-littoral countries on the sea, a Russian official has said.
Friday, September 26, 2014 - 09:53
As Gulnara Karimova, the embattled daughter of Uzbekistan’s strongman President Islam Karimov, stares the prospect of a jail term in the face, a new report by an international human rights watchdog offers a chilling peak at life behind bars in her father’s authoritarian state.
Friday, September 26, 2014 - 09:52
It’s no secret that Turkmenistan, a modern-day hermit khanate with one of the most repressive governments on earth, has an abundance of political prisoners. But until now, few details were known about how enemies of the state spent their time behind bars.
Wednesday, September 24, 2014 - 08:46
The arrest of 26 Azerbaijanis for allegedly joining armed Islamic groups in Syria and the wider region may help Azerbaijan place its strategic importance to the United States above criticism of its growing autocratic reputation.
Wednesday, September 24, 2014 - 07:37
Georgia has offered to host a training base for anti-ISIS Syrian rebels, marking a dramatic new step in Tbilisi's efforts to contribute to American-led military operations in the Middle East. That's according to Foreign Policy magazine , citing American and Georgian sources. But the Georgian government denied the report, saying it has no plans either to host a base or commit troops.
Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - 06:19
Kyrgyzstan's truck drivers say they are suffering because the U.S. military has shifted traffic to Uzbekistan in the wake of the closure of the Manas air base, which operated in Kyrgyzstan until earlier this year. But the U.S. military denies that any decrease in traffic is connected to the base closure.