Author: Akpulat Erentoz

Russia is refocusing its attention on Central Asia. As Alisher Khamidov and Peter Leonard discussed in the latest edition of the EurasiaChat podcast, last week saw a notable visit to Kyrgyzstan by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was in the country to attend a Commonwealth of Independent States leader summit. https://www.buzzsprout.com/2046820/13784226-eurasiachat-border-progress-gangster-woes-russia-s-return?client_source=small_player&iframe=true&referrer=https://www.buzzsprout.com/2046820/13784226-eurasiachat-border-progress-gangster-woes-russian-return.js?container_id=buzzsprout-player-13784226&player=small Beyond the usual speechifying and deal-making, there was some symbolism of note. As Alisher said, Putin made a point while in Bishkek of laying a wreath at the Ata Beyit memorial complex, which was created to honor victims of the Russian Tsarist suppression of an uprising known locally as…

Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) announced on Tuesday it had launched the National Automotive and Mobility Investment Company to develop local supply chain capabilities for the kingdom’s automotive and mobility industry. Shortened as Tasaru Mobility Investments, the company aims to localize manufacturing expertise and technologies to promote the development of electric vehicle industry and build an ecosystem for autonomous mobility, the PIF said in a statement. The company’s first investment is a joint venture with three local companies to develop an automotive logistics hub in King Abdullah Economic City in Saudi Arabia, which will serve the aftermarket parts industry. The…

Officials in Uzbekistan have said a government delegation will travel to Afghanistan in the coming months to conduct negotiations over an ambitious canal project that is sparking deep concern over water security in the region. Tashkent-based outlet Gazeta.uz on October 19 cited Ulugbek Kosimov, the governor of the southern Surkhandaryo region, which borders Afghanistan, as saying the talks could take place before the end of the year. This announcement comes on the heel of news that the Taliban-run government in Kabul is poised to start work on the second phase of the Qosh Tepa canal, which has been billed by Afghan officials…

Saudi Arabia’s state-owned railway operator Saudi Arabia Railways (SAR) has announced the launch of hydrogen train tests. The tests, set for October, came after the SAR and the French rail transportation company Alstom signed a memorandum of understanding in September 2022 to make hydrogen trains that were suitable for use in the kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. The tests will encompass operational experiments and studies to ensure the trains are compatible with Saudi Arabia’s environment, paving the way for their future entry into service, according to the SPA. SAR announced that these trains represent a pioneering initiative in…

There is yet another looming water crisis that Central Asia is having to contend with these days. In the latest edition of the EurasiaChat podcast, Peter Leonard and Alisher Khamidov opened with a look at the troubling lowering of the level of the Caspian Sea, which is posing a severe threat to its ecosystem and marine economy. The situation has been exacerbated by a combination of natural factors and human influence, with dire consequences for the region’s environmental and economic stability. The sea, which borders Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Russia, has seen a notable decline in its water level since…

Turkmenistan is the best place in Central Asia to be a woman. That, at least, is the finding of the latest edition of the Women, Peace, and Security Index compiled by researchers at Georgetown University and the Peace Research Institute Oslo. The index evaluates the status of women in any given country by considering 13 indicators categorized into three dimensions: inclusion, justice, and security, ultimately assigning nations a rank and score between 0 and 1. For regional context, Kyrgyzstan is positioned 95th with a score of 0.673. Neighboring Uzbekistan is 94th. Turkmenistan is considerably higher than both – 58th – and scores…

On September 14, 2023, the Board of the Central Bank decided to keep the interest rate at 14 percent, the Bank said today. Reportedly, despite a slight slowdown in inflationary processes in the economy, increasing pressure remains on the prices of some groups of goods. Due to the fact that electricity and gas tariffs for households were kept unchanged, there will be no primary impact on inflation from this group. It is expected that the secondary effects from the increase in energy prices for business entities will be within the limits taken into account in the inflation forecasts. Annual inflation…

Uzbekistan – 2030 Strategy and measures for its implementation in 2023 were approved by the president Mirziyoyev. The Strategy envisages 100 goals in 5 areas. In particular, one of the important goals was to increase the efficiency of countering corruption factors, to continue the work of forming an intolerant attitude towards corruption in the society. In this, the following were reflected as performance indicators of the goals to be achieved by 2030: source

Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry announced on Tuesday the kingdom will extend its voluntary oil production cut of one million barrels per day for another three months until the end of the year. The kingdom’s oil production from October to December will be approximately 9 million barrels per day, it said, adding the decision to reduce oil production will be reviewed monthly to determine whether to deepen the cut or to increase production. The kingdom’s voluntary cut of oil production was implemented in July and was extended to include August and September. The ministry said the move aimed to reinforce OPEC+…

Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade Laziz Qudratov, who is on a visit to the United States on September 4-5, held talks with the leadership of Air Products, Exxon Mobil, Abbott, HP, Valmont Industries, General Electric, Caterpillar, US Inc, John Deere Air Products , Exxon Mobil, Abbott, HP, Valmont Industries, General Electric, Caterpillar, US Inc, John Deere and others. According to the Ministry, the sides reached agreements were on the implementation of joint projects in Uzbekistan in the fields of energy, healthcare, water management, electronics, production of large equipment for the mining industry and agriculture, geological exploration and other areas.…