Via The Diplomat, an article on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Transport Corridor which is in use and has great potential, but the middle section through Kyrgyzstan still transports cargo via trucks and not railcars: China continues to diversify its land transportation options, and the Central Asian states are proactive players willing to tap into the opportunity to become […]
Read more »Via the Lowy Institute, an article on how Central Asia’s economic fortunes are increasingly bound to Beijing: For China, the Covid-19 question is answered by more Belt and Road. As Foreign Minister Wang Yi put it at a press conference during the 13th National People’s Congress in Beijing last weekend: The impact of Covid-19 on the Belt and […]
Read more »Courtesy of The Jamestown Foundation, a look at Russia’s efforts to gain access to new oil fields in Uzbekistan: Borders remain in dispute throughout Central Asia, with Moscow paying such close attention that governments in the region now feel the need to warn the Russian authorities not to become involved (Ritmeurasia.org, June 5). Often Moscow […]
Read more »Via Window on Eurasia, commentary on the potential for north-south trade in Central Asia: Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan have agreed to promote the expansion of rail traffic from their countries through Iran to Oman and thus to the world ocean, a path that China will likely be the biggest beneficiary of and that will challenge Moscow’s […]
Read more »Via The Diplomat, a look at Uzbekistan, four years into its liberalization efforts: It has been almost four years since Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev embarked on a modernization mission through a series of political and economic reforms to repair his country’s poor global reputation as repressive and isolated country. By 2019, Mirziyoyev’s political opening aimed at […]
Read more »Via Eurasia Review, a look at the impact of China’s gas demand reductions on Central Asia: As China cuts back on its commitments to import natural gas, it is trying to spread the shortfall among its increasingly hard-pressed suppliers. Hints of tensions have been rising since early March when reports first surfaced that PetroChina, the […]
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