Politics

Russian soldiers fold the national flag during a ceremony marking the beginning of the CSTO withdrawal from Kazakhstan in Almaty on Jan. 13.
International relations

Russian-led CSTO's Kazakhstan mission leaves lingering bootprints

Analysts see short deployment putting Moscow's security stamp on Central Asia

15 January 2022
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Podcast

Asia Stream: Deconstructing the Kazakhstan Crisis

From mob violence to military intervention, we investigate the unrest in the Central Asian state

14 January 2022
Collective Security Treaty Organization peacekeepers guard an area in Almaty, Kazakhstan on Jan. 11. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
12 January 2022
A man sits on the steps of a building in Almaty on Jan. 9 as a vehicle, which was burnt during mass protests triggered by rising fuel prices, is seen in the foreground. 
Politics

Kazakhstan says has so far detained nearly 8,000 over unrest

Authorities blame violence on 'extremists' and 'terrorists'

10 January 2022
Russian servicemen board a military aircraft heading to Kazakhstan, at an airfield outside Moscow on Jan. 6.
Politics

Kazakhstan unrest rattles region as Russia steps in: What to know

CSTO intervention raises U.S. eyebrows; China calls turmoil 'domestic affairs'

7 January 2022
A police car burns during a protest against rising fuel costs following the Kazakh authorities' decision to lift price caps on liquefied petroleum gas in Almaty on Jan. 5.
Politics

Kazakhstan: Shots heard as troops, protesters clash in Almaty

Internet down; Central bank decides to suspend all financial institutions

6 January 2022
A cryptocurrency mining data center in Kazakhstan in November: The national grid operator says the industry's huge appetite for electricity has strained the country's supply.
Cryptocurrencies

Kazakhstan's crypto mining boom fizzles over power supply strain

Miners feel 'scapegoated' for creaky grid, start to shift overseas

28 December 2021
The India-funded Chabahar Port in Iran in early 2019. New Delhi wants the site to become a gateway to trade with Central Asia. (Photo by Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
International relations

Spotlight on trade gateway as India hosts talks with Central Asia

Sunday discussions look set to focus on New Delhi-funded port in Iran

18 December 2021
Nursultan Nazarbayev, right, and Xi Jinping attend a news briefing after signing bilateral documents in Astana in September 2013: Kazakhstan's view on its connections to China is not as rosy as they once were.
Opinion

Ties that bind Kazakhstan to China are starting to unravel

Frustrations with Beijing are becoming increasingly visible

7 December 2021
A cryptocurrency mining company's data center in Kazakhstan on Nov. 6: Such operations have fueled an "abnormal" rise in the country's energy demand.
Cryptocurrencies

Crypto influx from China pushes Kazakhstan toward nuclear power

Energy-rich nation, now the No. 2 currency miner, is suddenly thirsty for juice

24 November 2021
Combines harvest a wheat field in Kazakhstan: The issue of land ownership is extremely sensitive in the country.
Politics

Kazakh ban on foreign farmland sales fails to quell China distrust

Defiant opposition ready for new protests despite getting its way

14 May 2021
Women in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, on July 13: The country continues to insist it is coronavirus-free.
Coronavirus

WHO leaves Turkmenistan in COVID gray zone as neighbors face surge

Central Asian nation says it has no cases but is advised to act like it does

18 July 2020
A bridge construction site of the Bar-Boljare highway, pictured in June 2018: for Montenegro any concerns were far outweighed by the potential economic benefit of the new road.
Opinion

For developing world, Belt and Road Initiative is best deal around

China's infrastructure offer supports economic growth in Europe, Africa and Asia

6 May 2020
A Kazakh crew disinfects the streets of the capital, Nur-Sultan, on March 25. The country was the first to record COVID-19 cases in Central Asia.
Coronavirus

Central Asia virus responses run gamut from crisis to nonchalance

Pandemic tests economies, health systems, China ties -- and folk remedies

1 April 2020
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo lambasted China for its treatment of its Muslim minorities on his visit to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
International relations

Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan spurn US call to confront China

Pompeo's plea to end 'repression' of Muslim minorities also draws Chinese ire

13 February 2020
Foreign students in Japan are allowed to work in unskilled-labor positions, such as convenience store work, for up to 28 hours per week. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi) 
Japan immigration

Japan intensifies crackdown on student visa overstayers

Number of countries subject to stricter checks to increase tenfold

11 February 2020
Despite the fanfare surrounding use of Gwadar port for trade with Afghanistan, experts say the facility has a long way to go before China sees any return on its investment.
Belt and Road

Beijing-backed Pakistan port opens as hub for Afghanistan trade

Gwadar challenges Indian interests in region, but China's ROI remains unclear

23 January 2020
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin: The Russian leader announced in September that the EAEU would start talks on a trade deal with India.
International relations

Russia woos India to sign trade pact with Eurasian Economic Union

Moscow hopes to show global heavyweights take its bloc seriously

15 January 2020
Central Asia's most populous country has the veneer of a multiparty system but no true opposition.
Politics

Uzbekistan election exposes limits of image-polishing reforms

China's economic influence will inevitably become political, experts say

19 December 2019
Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, in a written interview with the Nikkei Asian Review, said joining the World Trade Organization and cracking down on corruption are among his immediate priorities.
Interview

Uzbekistan plans over $6bn in joint projects with Japan

President Mirziyoyev to pitch resource development during Japan trip

18 December 2019
Tetsu Nakamura speaks to Nikkei on Sept. 14, 2018 in Fukuoka. (Photo by Mamoru Yago)
Obituaries

Japanese doctor who watered Afghan deserts: Nakamura in his own words

Tetsu Nakamura talked about his life and mission in 2018 Nikkei interview

9 December 2019
Tetsu Nakamura in the Gamberi Desert, Afghanistan in 2008
Obituaries

Tetsu Nakamura: Humanitarian who devoted his life to Afghanistan

Slain Japanese doctor wanted to 'shine light into dark corners'

5 December 2019
A Chinese freight train travels through the Marmaray Tunnel under the Bosporus in Istanbul early Thursday. The journey was the first uninterrupted freight train journey from Turkey to Europe, transporting cargo from China while skirting Russia. (Anatolia News Agency)
Belt and Road

Chinese freight train skirts Russia on new route into Europe

Japan-built Bosporus tunnel allows Beijing to diversify cargo transportation

9 November 2019
The talks between representatives of Taliban militants and a number of Afghan political factions in Beijing come as the U.S. has yet to resume peace talks with the Taliban. (Nikkei Montage)
Belt and Road

China to host Afghan rivals in drive to expand Belt and Road

Taliban included in peace talks as Beijing aims to isolate Xinjiang separatists

27 October 2019
Afghanistan's president Ashraf Ghani speaks in an interview with the Nikkei Asian Review in Tokyo on Oct. 22. (Photo by Shihoko Nakaoka)
Interview

Afghan president wants direct talks with Taliban, if reelected

Ghani says Pakistan holds key and needs 'to be constructive' toward peace process

22 October 2019