A new and potentially potent type of grievance has raised its head in China. Linguistic grievance, which is to say anger over the central government’s relentless promotion of Putonghua (or Mandarin) at the expense of older and regional tongues (namely Cantonese), has taken center-stage in... MORE

A popular Internet writer recently caused a stir when he asserted that “all Chinese who earn more than 120,000 yuan ($17,650) a year want to immigrate.” While this view is exaggerated, there is no denying the upsurge in Chinese emigration to Western countries—particularly the United... MORE

A thick haze of acrid and choking smoke from wildfires mixed with car engine emissions blankets Moscow. A record heat wave has engulfed most of European Russia for more than a month with temperatures exceeding 35 degrees celsius. According to official figures, by August 4,... MORE

The Russian government has pledged to support the country’s metal sector despite allegations of tax dodging. During the past decade, Russian metal companies have invested some 900 billion rubles ($29.7 billion) to upgrade and modernize their production facilities, Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, announced on... MORE

For weeks, the main news in Russia has been the weather –this summer has set many new heat records– but since last Friday, forest fires have become its new focus. Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, held a special council on this issue, and Prime Minister, Vladimir... MORE

Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi posted a eulogy on June 13, 2010, announcing the passing of his 24-year old son, Omar Izz al-Din, who was killed fighting in Mosul. In the tribute, al-Maqdisi confirmed that his son’s goal was to go to Afghanistan for violent jihad but... MORE

Kyrgyzstan’s parliamentary election on October 10, will either mark the beginning of a period of chaos or successful democratic change, according to Kyrgyz political leaders. The incumbent government leadership is convinced it will prove to be a turning point in democracy-building, while the opposition warns... MORE

Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, Moscow Mayor, Yury Luzhkov, and Patriarch Kirill flocked to Ukraine last week. While the official goals of the visits were different, each promoted the Kremlin’s ideology of a single Russian worldview and personally congratulated President, Viktor Yanukovych on his birthday,... MORE

Seven months into chairing the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Kazakhstan has achieved yet another foreign policy milestone –the heads of all 56 OSCE member-states will convene in Astana this fall for the first summit since 1999. The decision was announced at... MORE