The Belt and Road Initiative could exacerbate Central Asia’s water tensions, a new paper argues, and Beijing seems to have thought little about the risks.
Gambling addiction has been a problem for many years in Kazakhstan, but authorities have been largely deaf to the laments of suffering relatives, until recently.
Regional governments are eager for job-creating export industries, especially in agriculture. Market access gives Beijing more leverage than debt ever could.
While the hydrocarbon field that Baku and Ashgabat will jointly develop isn’t itself a gamechanger, it could finally open up Turkmenistan’s massive gas reserves for European markets.
The state has set up three “voluntary” funds for Azerbaijanis to cover post-war needs. But widespread reports suggest that people are being forced to contribute.
Spraying chlorine, new infrastructure on the Afghan border, and claims of a naturally occurring COVID vaccine. This and more in our weekly Turkmenistan bulletin.
Ashgabat may hope expending energy to attain international respectability will improve its chances of tapping global financial institutions for investment.
