Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan announced that they will ratify the Eurasian Economic Union Treat during this coming fall. The four counties have all been the objects of considerable attention from the Kremlin as it seeks to develop a union similar to that of the European Union in its own backyard. Russian President Vladimir Putin has…

The Chinese government has executed 13 individuals for crimes of terrorism in China’s troubled Xinjiang province. The executions, which were carried out on Monday, were justified by Chinese government officials who claimed the individuals had encouraged terrorist activity and “planned violent terrorist attacks” while killing “police officers, government officials and civilians.” The attacks mentioned were…

Any semblance of trust that had existed between Ukraine and Russia during this past weekend has quickly evaporated after reports emerged that tanks provisioned by Moscow rolled across Ukraine’s borders, apparently under the command of rebel forces. Ukrainian officials have reported that rebels are now in possession of three Russian tanks and an assortment of…

Ramsar, Iran, a beach-lined Iranian city bordering the Caspian Sea in Iran’s northwest, recently played host to a meeting of the working group for the legal status of the Caspian Sea. The attendees of the meeting included delegations sent from Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. The five countries, in addition to enjoying mostly amicable…

Just a day after it appeared that talks between Russia and Ukraine would fail to bear fruit, both sides renewed their commitment to substantive negotiations over the two nations’ economic and political relations. Officials from Kiev and Moscow met along with a delegation from Poland in St. Petersburg in order to discuss, among other things,…

Flash Floods in Northern Afghanistan have claimed the lives of more than 70 Afghans who had previously inhabited villages in the remote Baghlan province. The death toll, which has been estimated at between 80 and 100, has driven hundreds more from homes that have been quickly washed away by the rapid influx of water.  This…

Fears of another cold war seemingly allayed, Russia and the United States have renewed talks surrounding bilateral space cooperation. Shortly after the first US sanctions were doled out as a response to Russia’s annexation and activities that were perceived to fan the flame of separatism in eastern Ukraine, many news outlets began to speculate over…

The third in a series of pipelines connecting mainland China with Central Asia has been launched. The pipeline, which will stretch from Turkmenistan into its eastern neighbor Uzbekistan and finally end up in China, was commemorated with a ribbon ceremony in Gazli, Uzbekistan. The line will connect with already extant lines A and B, which…

Ukrainian business magnate Petro Poroshenko took an overwhelming share of the country’s vote in this past weekend’s election, coming away with more than 55% of all votes. The to-be fifth president of Ukraine was previously Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs (2009-2010) and the Minister of Trade and Economic Development in 2012. Close ties to the…

The first round of Afghanistan’s presidential elections official wrapped up on over a week ago on May 15, with results showing that Abdullah Abdullah, the former Afghan Minister of Foreign Affairs, prevailed with nearly 15% more of the vote than Ashraf Ghani, a former Afghan Minister of Finance and World Bank official, his closest competitor.…