In late October, Kazakhstan halted the export of 106 products to Russia, a move attributed to Astana’s growing compliance with Western sanctions. Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebayev confirmed that the banned products are primarily linked to military goods, including drones, their... MORE

On November 25, a “Big Circle” (Bol’shoi Krug) meeting of “over 200 delegates from 83 regions of Russia and 43 countries of the world” took place in Moscow to discuss Cossack issues and confirm the election of Chief Ataman Nikolai Dyakanov as leader of the... MORE

On November 28, Alen Simonyan, head of Armenia’s National Assembly, told journalists that “the ball is in Azerbaijan’s court” regarding peace negotiations between the two countries. He added, “Armenia fully supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. … If desired, the peace agreement can be signed... MORE

On November 16, Baku canceled a meeting between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan scheduled to take place on November 20 in Washington (Apa.az, November 16). The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry asserted that, under the current circumstances, it is not possible to proceed with US-mediated... MORE

On November 19, the wives and mothers of mobilized Russian soldiers held a protest in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk against rumors of another mass mobilization and demanded the return of “their guys.” Similar protests have swept across Russia in recent weeks but were met... MORE

The Kremlin has welcomed the Israel-Hamas truce in Gaza that began on November 24. The pause, however, does not fit into Russia’s larger designs for the Middle East. From Moscow's perspective, further escalation would have been a much better option in disrupting the US-led world... MORE

The West’s inadequate arming of Ukraine predetermined costly failures for Kyiv’s counteroffensive. The effort to dislodge Russian forces from their entrenched positions in southeastern Ukraine has become a difficult endeavor both militarily and politically (Euromaidan Press, November 6). Kyiv felt obligated to meet unrealistic expectations... MORE

On October 26, Indian government-owned Goa Shipyard signed a substantial shipbuilding contract with Russia. The agreement calls for Goa to construct 24 river-sea class cargo ships for Russian clients in the Caspian Sea by 2027. The director of Caspian International Integration Club North-South, Dmitry Dubovik,... MORE

On October 27, the Moscow-backed separatist government in Abkhazia signed a public-private partnership agreement with the recently established Russian company Infrastructure Development to restore operations at the Babushera airport near the Abkhazian capital of Sukhumi. Rashid Nurgaliyev Jr., the son of the current deputy secretary... MORE

The Caspian Sea is in danger of drying up. On June 7, government officials in the coastal city of Aktau, Kazakhstan, released a statement declaring a natural state of emergency for the maritime industry due to the sea’s low water levels (Facebook.com/Aktau_Press, June 7; Eurasianet,... MORE