Since 1991 Kazakhstan has pursued a multilayered foreign policy, juggling its evolving foreign initiatives from hydrocarbons to military cooperation with its former Communist master Russia through growing relationships with China and the United States. Now a fourth player is entering the market—Israel, not for Kazakhstan’s... MORE

Last year prior to the celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8, Kyrgyz Minister of Justice Marat Kaypov proposed to legalize polygamy as a means of fighting poverty and prostitution among women. Although his idea drew public attention, the parliament avoided discussing the minister’s... MORE

The question of the spread of Islamic fundamentalism occupies a substantial part of political discourse in Kyrgyzstan. A new bill on “Freedom of religious practices and religious organizations” in particular is being actively discussed within the Kyrgyz government. While Kyrgyzstan’s two mainstream religious organizations, the... MORE

The 17th session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly hosted by Kazakhstan in Astana from June 29 to July 3 is generally seen as an outstanding diplomatic victory for Kazakhstan on its uphill way to political recognition by the Western world. On the other hand, it... MORE

Since Mongolia abandoned Communism in 1990, it has sought to maintain its independence, sandwiched as it is between the two giant neighbors, Russia and China, by discreetly reaching out to the west and the United States in particular. While Mongolia has observer status in the... MORE

As inflation for food and energy is rising by the month, public debates about the government’s ability to handle the worsening economy are becoming ever more common in Kyrgyzstan. Local civil society groups and journalists voice concerns over the course of privatization of the country’s... MORE

Suspicions of a fraudulent election, combined with rampant inflation, low living standards and perceptions of widespread corruption have combined to create a perfect storm of protest in Mongolia’s capital Ulan Bator, where in the evening of July 1 a crowd estimated at 8,000 to 10,000... MORE

On July 2, 10 members of the Council of Defense Ministers of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) convened in Bishkek to discuss issues of further cooperation, integration processes in the military sector and increasing "mutual understanding." In particular, they discussed the strengthening of cooperation... MORE