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…

Last month, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia were approved to propose the so-called “roadmap” for integration into the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan by a summit meeting in Astana (which recently announced its change in title and function to the Eurasian Economic Union or EEU at the beginning of next year). The roadmap has now hit…

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…

Despite the successful election of Petro Poroshenko, clashes in the Donetsk Oblast have increased. Separatist troops attacked the Donetsk airport and were repelled by government forces. Vladyslav Seleznyov, the spokesman for the Ukrainian army’s current operations in the east, said that “pro-Russian separatists are attacking Ukrainian forces’ checkpoints all the time in Slovyansk,” a noted…

Yesterday in Astana, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his counterparts from Belarus and Kazakhstan met to initiate the formation of the Eurasian Economic Union as a successor trade and legal framework to the Customs Union. The new regulations imposed by the EEU give citizens of member states equal employment and education opportunities across all three…

On Tuesday, President Obama announced plans to keep 9,800 troops in Afghanistan after 2014 until withdrawal in 2016. He made these remarks in preparation for a major speech to be delivered today on the recalibration of American foreign policy and countering criticism. Ultimate withdrawal from Afghanistan, he argued, will give the US more flexibility to…

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…

Exit polls in Ukraine indicate that Petro Poroshenko has won the presidential election over other rival candidates like Yulia Tymoshenko and Serhiy Tihipko. The victory was expected by most observers in the previous week, as he enjoyed a wide lead over his rivals. Despite the nearly unambiguous victory, the regional governments of eastern Ukraine reported that only 9…

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.…

The Ukrainian chocolate magnate Petro Poroshenko is poised to win the presidential elections in Ukraine that are taking place on the 25th of May. Opinion polls place him first in the election, far ahead of any potential competitors. The current election will be the most important the country has had since it gained independence during…