As food prices continue to rise in Kyrgyzstan, the potential for another political crisis is rising. Kyrgyz Prime Minister Almazbek Atambayev recently threatened to sack ministers who failed to foresee and prevent the 30% inflation rate for wheat prices in the past three months. If... MORE

In the past few weeks Kyrgyzstan has endured steadily rising food prices. According to estimates by the Kyrgyz parliament, roughly 500,000 people, the poorest stratum of the population, are directly affected by increased prices for bread and other basic products. The Kyrgyz government blames neighboring... MORE

On August 16, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) held its annual summit in Bishkek, the Kyrgyz capital. This was the largest event to date for both Bishkek and the SCO, as the summit brought together official representatives of 12 countries. Energy cooperation and security issues... MORE

On July 30, Kyrgyz State Secretary Adakhan Madumarov officially presented his national ideological project called “Development through Unity.” Creating and spreading national ideologies in Kyrgyzstan has been the state secretary’s main function since the early 1990s. However, after completing his task responsibly, Madumarov faced widespread... MORE

Radical groups operating within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states will be placed on a new, common list of banned organizations. On July 24 Toygonbek Kalmatov, from the Kyrgyz government agency for religious, confirmed that SCO representatives recently held a closed meeting in order to... MORE

Last month Kyrgyz opposition leader Melis Eshimkanov was nominated to become Kyrgyzstan’s ambassador to Switzerland. Eshimkanov is a member of the “For Reforms” parliamentary opposition bloc, which promotes long-term political changes in Kyrgyzstan. Despite widespread criticism in political circles for giving up the fight for... MORE

On July 9 the Shanghai Cooperation Organization council of foreign ministers met in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, to finalize the agenda for the forthcoming SCO summit in August. Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Ednan Karabayev commented afterward that the summit will focus on developing the work of the SCO-Afghanistan... MORE

Accusations of espionage against Dzhyparkul Arykova, a consultant to the Kyrgyz parliamentary press service arrested on June 19, has thrown the national intelligence community into crisis. In recent days the authorities have tried to distance themselves from media reports that the case centers on Arykova’s... MORE

On Monday, June 25 Iran, Mongolia, and Turkmenistan confirmed their participation at the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit scheduled for August 16 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. The presidents of all three countries – Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Nambaryn Enkhbayar, and Gurbanguly Berdimukhamedov – will attend as distinguished... MORE