Executive Summary: Hungary hosted an informal summit of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) in May 2025, aiming to strengthen Budapest’s strategic positioning between the East and West, diversify diplomatic alliances, and boost the organization’s regional influence in Eurasia. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is... MORE

Executive Summary: Kazakhstan and Afghanistan signed a protocol of intent on April 24 to jointly develop the Turgundi–Herat–Kandahar–Spin Boldak railway, including a logistics hub in Herat and fiber optic infrastructure to support digital connectivity. The railway is one aspect of regional transport development that could... MORE

Executive Summary:  Kazakhstan is expanding rail cargo capacity on the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), which uses Kazakhstan to bypass Russian infrastructure between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Europe.  Major investments, including a second Dostyk-Moiynty rail track and over 1,300 miles of new... MORE

Executive Summary: The deepening drought in southern Russia is threatening the region and its food production, as well as Moscow’s relationship with neighboring states harmed by the reduced flow of the Volga River into the Caspian Sea. Southern Russia’s drought is having a serious negative... MORE

Executive Summary: Central Asian governments have traditionally viewed outmigration as a way to reduce unemployment and provide additional cash flow for the population and government through payments sent home, but the problems this outmigration has led to in Central Asia are gaining more attention. These... MORE

Executive Summary: Ukraine has escalated its campaign against Russian energy targets, striking the Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s (CPC) Kropotkinskaia oil pumping station (OPS) in February. The CPC pipeline is Kazakhstan’s primary export route, handling 80 percent of its crude oil, and the strike on the Kropotkinskaia... MORE

Executive Summary: Japan, the fifth largest economy in the world, is making new moves to gain access to natural resources and industries in Central Asia, sparking tension with Moscow and Beijing. The Japanese government views recent Central Asian agreements on borders as opening a new... MORE

Executive Summary: Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan have announced they will hold joint naval exercises in the northern portion of the Caspian Sea near Russia’s coastline to prepare for any asymmetrical threat. While this announcement was overshadowed by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ratification of a cooperation accord... MORE

Executive Summary: The five Central Asian countries have suffered a new brain drain since gaining independence in 1991, with a large share of their advanced students and best scholars moving to the West rather than to Russia, as had been the case in Soviet times.... MORE

Executive Summary: Kazakhstan launched a new container rail service linking the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Poland, reinforcing its position as a vital transit hub through Eurasia. The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan (CKU) railway, a part of the PRC’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative, has emerged as... MORE