After rewarding himself with a more pliant constitution, the president held a massive military parade. This and more in our weekly Turkmenistan briefing.
Since independence, votes in Kyrgyzstan have been contested more toughly than those in its Central Asian neighbors. But competitive does not always mean clean.
All eyes will be on who gets the nod as chair of the Senate, since that person would be in a position to succeed Berdymukhamedov in the event of his sudden death or incapacitation.
Between the unacknowledged pandemic and economic devastation, protestors said the situation at home is so dire that inaction seems worse than government reprisals.