Geopolitical competition over Central Asia is intensifying, with the two most prominent longstanding rivals, Russia and China, now confronted by the rising power of a third, Turkey. Thus, Moscow and Beijing have worked to limit Ankara’s influence in this landlocked region; but each has sought... MORE

Kazakhstan’s Lake Balkhash, the 15th largest freshwater lake in the world, may follow the Aral Sea into extinction, Russian researcher Petr Bologov warned six years ago. Not only is the lake threatened by excessive water use by the population and agricultural development in Kazakhstan, but... MORE

Introduction In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on the global economy, pessimistic analyses of the Belt and Road Initiative culminated with the December 7 publication by Boston University of a dataset covering overseas lending by two of China’s main policy banks, which showed... MORE

Azerbaijan’s victory in the Second Karabakh War (September 29–November 9) has had a transformative effect on the country. It not only changed the attitudes of its population, whose members now feel themselves to be heroes rather than victims (see EDM, January 21), but also bolstered... MORE

As in much of the rest of the world, the year 2020 in Kazakhstan was dominated by the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, which to date has claimed the lives of more than 2,300 Kazakhstanis, according to a government-run information portal. Since August 2020, the... MORE

The 20th summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) was held virtually, on November 10, under the rotating chairmanship of the Russian Federation. The leaders of the regional organization’s member states—Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and... MORE

Editor’s Note: This is the third installment of a three-part China Brief series about the Chinese government’s efforts to exert greater influence over regional security arrangements and policy in the states of Central Asia. The first part, “The Security Component of the BRI in Central... MORE

On July 29, the Russian government issued an order concerning plans for the development of federal transport, railway, information and communications infrastructure that includes the construction of Port Lagan, in the Republic of Kalmykia (Portnews.ru, August 3). The idea to establish a port in Kalmykia... MORE

Despite some disruptions to this year’s military training schedule caused by the COVID-19 pandemic (see EDM, April 21, 22), the Russian Armed Forces are preparing to hold their annual capstone strategic-operational exercise on September 15–26. “Kavkaz 2020” (“Caucasus 2020”) will feature large-scale drills spread across... MORE

Central Asia is suffering a significant economic downturn precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic that will deepen during the coming months (The Astana Times, May 5; Imf.org, July 2020). The health crisis could also have a profound geopolitical effect in the region. As the United States... MORE