Executive Summary: The Ahiska Turks ethnic group have faced ongoing persecution and forced displacement since the Soviet era. Attacks and discrimination persist in Russia, and ethnic discrimination, threats, and coercion have forced many to seek asylum in the United States. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of... MORE

Executive Summary: Cyprus has been deeply influenced by Russian interests over the past 30 years, becoming a hub for Russian oligarchs and the country’s financial sector to launder money and avoid Western sanctions. While the European Union has imposed restrictions on Cyprus, the island’s division... MORE

Executive Summary: Through television broadcasts overseas, like Jongugu Sapar in Kyrgyzstan, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) presents an image of ethnic harmony and economic development in Xinjiang, downplaying or omitting signs of colonialism, forced labor, or suppression of Turkic cultural identity. The PRC’s positive... MORE

Executive Summary: Beijing pushes an inaccurate narrative in Kyrgyz media, overstating the positive impact of its investment in and development aid to Kyrgyzstan and claiming that this makes it a trustworthy neighbor, according to analysis of thousands of local media sources. A survey of 1,000... MORE

Executive Summary: Beijing pressures the Kyrgyz government to censor voices criticizing the People’s Republic of China (PRC), its companies, and its citizens within the Kyrgyz Republic. As PRC companies have expanded in country—particularly in the mining sector—extensive environmental damage has provoked local protests. Some cultural... MORE

Executive Summary: Beijing aims to enforce censorship outside its borders by targeting the gatekeepers of information and manipulating narratives that it does not currently monopolize. Over the past two hundred years, groups like the Uyghurs, Dungans, and ethnic Kyrgyz have fled China for the territory... MORE

Executive Summary: Beijing practices public memory management beyond its borders to neutralize critics by coopting elites and suppressing independent voices. Despite protests, Kyrgyzstan has consistently supported Beijing’s interests, particularly regarding a land transfer and the treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Beijing continues to incentivize ruling... MORE

At The Jamestown Foundation, we focus most of our efforts on understanding the world from the Bering Strait and the South China Sea to the Baltic and Mediterranean seas. The strength of our work comes from our analysts who reside in more than 30 countries... MORE