Uzbekistan's President Islam Karimov traveled to Moscow June 28-29, apparently seeking reassurance amid growing international pressure for an independent investigation into last month's bloody crackdown in Uzbekistan. Karimov reiterated his assertion that the riots in the eastern town of Andijan had been planned from abroad.... MORE

Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev is gaining moral support for his initiative to form a union of Central Asian states, as declared in his annual address to the nation in February. Significantly, Nazarbayev recently noted that the Central Asian states strive for economic, as well as... MORE

Bishkek faces a difficult decision regarding the legal status of refugees who fled to Kyrgyzstan on May 13-14 following the riots in Andijan, Uzbekistan. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) expects the Kyrgyz leadership to comply with international standards and assign the Uzbek immigrants... MORE

On June 24 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan President Saparmurat Niyazov and Naftohaz Ukrainy chairman Oleksiy Ivchenko signed a contract radically changing the modalities of the gas trade between the two countries. It involves a staggering volume of Turkmen gas, at deeply discounted prices, to be paid... MORE

Amid Pakistani President's Musharraf's claims that al-Qaeda's "back is broken," and those by U.S. officials that Al-Qaeda is focused on Iraq, the Arabic daily Al-Quds al-Arabi has described "a noticeable increase in the attacks on U.S. forces in various parts of Afghanistan." Explanations for the... MORE

Vladimir Bozhko, first deputy chairman of Kazakhstan's National Security Committee (KNB), believes that the terrorist threat to Kazakhstan is real and growing. Highlighting the nature of that threat as it emerges within the country, he has called for a new approach to the whole issue... MORE

The debate over an independent investigation of the May massacre in Andijan, Uzbekistan, has left America's ties to Uzbekistan and the future of its base at Karshi Khanabad engulfed by turmoil. The European Parliament is raising the issue of EU sanctions on Uzbekistan, and Secretary... MORE

During the last two months, Kazakh state officials have made an unprecedented number of "working trips" to remote regions of the country. In what was widely perceived as a pre-election publicity stunt, President Nursultan Nazarbayev toured the coal-rich Karaganda region on June 15 and praised... MORE

Dzirgalbek Sourabaldiyev, a well-known businessman and a member of Kyrgyzstan's parliament, was assassinated in downtown Bishkek on June 10. The deputy was shot five or six times, and his driver was also injured. The Kyrgyz parliament convened an emergency session that same day. According to... MORE