As Turkmenistan has been closed off from the rest of the world for most of the period since 1991 and as Ashgabat’s commitment to neutrality has meant that it is not a participant in many multilateral forums, Turkmenistan frequently has been ignored in discussions about... MORE

The last year has been a difficult one for Taiwan. The Russian invasion of Ukraine and the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) intensification of diplomatic, economic, military and political pressure on Taiwan, along with disinformation, espionage and influence operations conducted through United Front work and... MORE

For two decades after the establishment of their Union State in 1999, Belarus and Russia benefited from the most integrated relationship across the post-Soviet space. Yet, many elements of further integration as laid out by the Union State treaty remained largely dormant until 2021 (see... MORE

At a recent event organized by the Belarusian service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (BSRL), the topic—“Can the West Exert Influence on Lukashenka?”—was debated between two analysts. Ryhor Astapenia, one of the debaters, earlier, had issued his critical account of Western policies vis-à-vis Belarus, in... MORE

On April 26, 2023, Italian Minister of Defense Guido Crosetto visited Uzbekistan. He first met with the Minister of Defense, General Bakhodir Kurbanov, and the President’s Special Representative for Foreign Policy Affairs, Abdulaziz Kamilov, before concluding his series of meetings with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev (Difesa.it,... MORE

Since Russian President Vladimir Putin began his ill-fated “special military operation” (SVO) against Ukraine, subsequent international sanctions imposed in response produced the slowly mounting hemorrhaging of foreign firms based in the Russian Federation to other post-Soviet states, with many choosing to relocate to Kazakhstan. On April... MORE

When the role of outside powers in Central Asia is considered, Japan is often not among them—despite the fact that it has a unique advantage which has opened the way to considerable success in the areas where Tokyo has employed it. It is an Asian... MORE

On April 10, during her first official visit to India after Russia launched its all-out war against Ukraine in February 2022, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova urged the Indian government to diversify its energy and military resources. “We think that it is crucial to... MORE

Moscow very much hopes to strengthen both itself and its alliance with Beijing by helping China corner the rare earths market in response to American plans for a blockade of Chinese technology producers. Russia could do so by providing supplies of these critical minerals to... MORE

As President Xi Jinping said farewell to his host and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the end of his visit to Moscow last month, a few Western media outlets caught the Chinese strongman’s parting words to his good friend on the doorstep of  the Kremlin:... MORE