Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine is capturing much of the world’s attention, but Central Asia is more concerned about what’s happening south of the border in Afghanistan. There are several militant groups in northern Afghanistan who hope to topple the Tajik and Uzbek governments. Some of these groups are allies of
Navbahor Imamova VOA News April 14, 2023 WASHINGTON — A gathering of regional foreign ministers to discuss the way forward in Afghanistan this week brought little in the way of new initiatives but provided a forum for several of Kabul’s neighbors to blame the country’s economic plight on the United States and its Western allies. The United
By Chris Rickleton Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty April 5, 2023 When the Taliban returned to power in 2021 in a lightning military insurrection that toppled Afghanistan’s internationally recognized government, the country immediately fell into diplomatic isolation. Two of Kabul’s neighbors to the north, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, chose a different route, putting the hard-line group’s fractious history
Mehr News Agency (Iran): Russia’s most extensive military base is stationed in the cities of Dushanbe and Bokhtar, and according to the agreement signed in October 2012, the military bases in Tajikistan will remain through 2042. The military maneuver came after the security concerns expressed by the Russian envoy and the Collective Security Treaty Organization
Khaama: The Qosh Tepa is an enormous canal building on the Amudarya River, raising the concern of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan due to the potential effect for drawing water and affecting the countries. The project was inaugurated last year and covered 285 KM, beginning from the Amu River in Balkh Province, passing through Jawzjan, and ending
The Economist: Taliban officials have started talking up a new canal under construction in the arid north of Afghanistan. The Islamist regime says some 5,500 people are working around the clock on the project, using over 3,300 bits of machinery. Once completed, the Qosh Tepa Canal will divert water from the Amu Darya river for
Ayaz Gul VOA News February 15, 2023 ISLAMABAD — The chief diplomat in Afghanistan’s ruling Islamist Taliban has rejected as baseless Russia’s allegations that thousands of Islamic State militants have gathered in northern Afghanistan and threaten the stability of the Central Asian region. “How come thousands of such people are concentrated in one place and still
By Farangis Najibullah Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty January 30, 2023 With the Taliban government banning women from attending universities in Afghanistan, an EU-funded project is being revived to bring dozens of Afghan girls to study in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. More than 100 Afghan girls who were awarded five-year scholarships are already in the host countries
Akmal Dawi VOA News December 15, 2022 Following this week’s Islamic State attack on a guesthouse in Kabul, U.S. officials say the terrorist group is recruiting a multiethnic force that threatens security in neighboring countries and that the Taliban need to do more to eliminate the threat. While the Taliban claim they have restored peace
Ariana: The government of Pakistan, facing gas shortage as winter sets in, has worked out a plan to import liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) overland from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan, Pakistan Today reported on Thursday. The customs office in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan, after consultations with stakeholders, sent a plan to the Federal Board of Revenue