Conflicting reports place either Abdullah Abdullah or Ashraf Ghani taking the lead in the historic Afghan elections. The early results have prompted claims of fraud by opponents, although the wait for the official end of the vote-counting period on April 24 means accurate predictions and results are still far off. With the field packed with…

Recent weeks have seen decreased hopes that the Kashagan oil field will begin producing in the near future. Sources close to the project stated today that the supergiant will be shut down for at least two years waiting for the construction of specialty pipelines that can accommodate toxic H2S fumes and associated corrosion. This is…

Nearly 60% of Afghanistan’s populace turned out to vote in presidential elections held this past Saturday in Afghanistan. The effort has been described as courageous and indicative of a strong desire to move Afghan society forward, as 7 of Afghanistan’s 12 million voted despite threats of violent retribution from Taliban militants. Due to the country’s…

The long-awaited Afghan presidential election occurs tomorrow, April 5. Violence has been steadily increasing since the beginning of campaign season in January, with two AP journalists shot yesterday in Khost. Eastern Afghanistan has seen the largest spike in campaign-related violence, especially with the continued presence of the Tehrik-i-Taliban (benefitting from their temporary cease-fire with Islamabad…

The 36th Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea commenced on Wednesday. The annual meeting, which convened in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, has been attended by delegations from Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran and Kazakhstan, as well the host country. Debates have traditionally revolved around the legal rights to the strategically crucial Caspian, though discussions this year…

Ashraf Ghani and Zalmay Rassoul have emerged as the new frontrunners only days before the Afghan elections takes place on April 5, according to polls released on Monday. They are notably the only ethnically pure Pashtun candidates (other than the half-Tajik, half-Pashtun Dr. Abdullah Abdullah). 42% of Afghanistan is ethnically Pashtun, with other significant groups…

On the heels of another significant investment in Central Asian infrastructure, the World Bank doled out an additional $200m to assist Uzbekistan Railways in the construction of a railway line that will traverse Kamchik pass in eastern Uzbekistan. The Bank is working hand in glove with Uzbek authorities in order to develop better rail infrastructure…

Pipelines passing through Ukraine to markets in Europe are in danger of being disrupted by the annexation of Crimea. Russia’s Gazprom raised prices on natural gas entering Ukraine from Russia by 37% in the past month, putting pressure on the EU to back off. Kazakhstan, whose economy is almost entirely dependent on the export of…

Ever since November’s Joint Plan of Action (JPOA) deal in Geneva to ease economic sanctions on Iran, the country has begun to export its petroleum reserves far above levels permitted even by the eased sanctions. This month marks the fifth month to see that limit exceeded. Under the current deal, Iran’s current exports are supposed…

The resignation of Ukrainian Foreign Minister Igor Tenyukh was accepted in the wake of the Ukrainian Military’s complete withdrawal from Crimea. The ouster of Tenyukh comes as no surprise given the tumultuous state of Ukrainian military affairs that was exemplified by the inability of the military to resist Russian when it moved to usurp Ukrainian…