Central Asia
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Central Asia

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Central Asia
Central Asia
News from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.
A file photo taken on September 11, 2023, shows BYD EVs waiting to be loaded on a ship at the international container terminal of Taicang Port at Suzhou Port, in China’s eastern Jiangsu Province. Photo: AFP
Electric & new energy vehicles

Chinese EV industry pressed to accelerate global expansion amid tariffs

Companies should balance exports and overseas production while seeking to achieve win-wins with foreign partners, former vice-minister says.

Diplomacy

‘Eternal peace’: Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan border deal opens path to visa-free zone

Afghanistan after the US

Taliban celebrates as the US lifts bounties on senior officials

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European Union

Opinion | Why China and Europe are competing to woo Central Asia

Both powers are interested in the region’s resources, from natural gas to uranium, and the potential of the trans-Caspian transport route.

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French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and his wife Brigitte greet Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev as he arrives for a state dinner at the Elysee Palace in Paris on March 12. Uzbek and French companies have signed a cooperation agreement on uranium deposit development. Photo: AFP
Afghanistan

UK woman fears for elderly father detained by Taliban in Afghanistan

A British couple in their 70s were arrested by the Taliban last month.

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China trade

China lays track for stronger regional relations through railway lines

China’s neighbours in Southeast and Central Asia have begun construction or made agreements on cross-border railway projects, bolstering bilateral ties.

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Fashion

No miniskirts, no hijab – ex-Soviet republic polices women’s fashion

Having banned ‘foreign clothes’, Tajikistan’s president is set to issue ‘scientific’ advice on what women should wear. Some are pushing back.

Tajik fashion designer Khurshed Sattorov presents traditional garb at his workshop. Women in Tajikistan are being advised by the government to wear more “Tajik-style” clothing. Photo: AFP
Electric & new energy vehicles

Exclusive | Why does a Kazakh tycoon want to ride China’s electric vehicle wave?

‘We are a natural partner for China, especially in the growing EV sector,’ says Kenges Rakishev, chairman of the Fincraft Group.

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Belt and Road Initiative

Macroscope | Why China’s belt and road will go from strength to strength

With rival initiatives lacking substance, Beijing’s transcontinental project is likely to expand as the US exits multilateral commitments.

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Hong Kong economy

Opinion | How Hong Kong can seize opportunities along Silk Road Economic Belt

By deepening cooperation, the city can leverage its unique brand and core advantages to help businesses uncover new areas for growth.

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Tourists taste grapes at the 30th China Silk Road Turpan Grape Festival in Xinjiang, on August 17. Turpan, China’s main grape producer, has more than 550 types, making it the “vineyard of the world”. As a renowned culinary capital and an international wine trading hub, Hong Kong is ideally positioned to showcase these products. Photo: Xinhua
US-China relations

Quiet clash over Afghanistan may presage more US-China tensions at UN

Beijing has shown interest in initiating and guiding UN resolutions and mandates concerning Kabul, which Washington opposes.

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Afghans receiving UN-sponsored rations distributed by the National Disaster Preparedness Office in Kabul, on Thursday. Photo: EPA-EFE
China energy security

China hedges its energy bets as Russia pipeline plan remains on hold

The controversial Power of Siberia 2 pipeline seems less likely to commence after China spent 2024 diversifying its energy imports.

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Hong Kong society

Editorial | Cooler heads must prevail when tempers heat up in ice hockey

Fights are common in this intense sport but brawl involving Turkmenistan and Hong Kong at Asian Winter Games in Harbin broke all protocol.

India

India fears impact of Trump’s Iran sanctions on Chabahar port

As Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi lands in Washington this week, a US$370 million question looms over his visit.

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Chabahar port. New Delhi entered an agreement with Tehran in 2016 to develop the port in southeastern Iran. Photo: Handout
US-China trade war

China sends trade mission to Central Asia as it braces for US tariff war

The delegation of Chinese oil and gas executives set off hours after Beijing imposed retaliatory tariffs on US energy imports.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev sign an agreement to deepen cooperation in a slew of fields in 2024. China has been building ties with emerging markets amid growing tensions with the West in recent years. Photo: Xinhua
Egypt

Aga Khan, leader of Ismaili Muslims, laid to rest in Egypt during private burial

The spiritual leader, who is widely regarded as a builder of bridges between Muslim societies and West, died in Portugal on Tuesday.

US-China trade war

The US is scrambling to replace China’s rare earths. Is Ukraine the answer?

China’s tightening export controls are pushing America to look far and wide for alternative sources of critical minerals, but it has few options.

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Belt and Road Initiative

Belt and robot: China’s robotics industry is moving into Central Asia

Shanghai-based start-up AgiBot will partner with Kazakhstan to open the first Chinese robotics manufacturing and research facilities in Central Asia.

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Humanoid robots made by Unitree Robotics perform during Chinese state broadcaster CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala. Photo: CCTV
Asia travel

Paris, mountain truck stop in Central Asia with its own Eiffel Tower

A makeshift village in Kyrgyzstan offers food and warmth to truckers plying a dangerous north-south mountain road. But for how much longer?

Bangladesh

Opinion | South Asia’s geopolitical landscape is shifting, creating new alliances

From Bangladesh and Pakistan growing closer to Afghanistan’s courting of India, the region’s political calculus looks more complex than ever.

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Afghanistan

Taliban ‘has no legal right’ to US$4 billion Afghan fund

A US watchdog said the Taliban have no right to the funding because they are not recognised as its government and are under sanctions.

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An Afghan money changer counts banknotes at a currency exchange market in Kabul on January 26. Photo: AFP
Pakistan

Gwadar airport opening boosts China-Pakistan ties but raises India’s concerns

The airport is expected to boost trade and connectivity, but also intensifies India’s concerns about China’s potential military presence in the region.

The Gwadar New International Airport opened on January 20, 2025 Photo: Photo: X/Chinese Embassy in Pakistan
Belt and Road Initiative

Letters | Can Hong Kong safeguard its Belt and Road Initiative investments?

Readers discuss the city’s ties to Xinjiang, and the benefits of young people working abroad.

Iran

Iran, Taliban call for more ties in high-level Kabul talks

Iran’s foreign minister met with his Afghan counterpart and Taliban government Prime Minister Hassan Akhund during a one-day visit.

Pakistan

Malala Yousafzai urges Muslim leaders not to ‘legitimise’ Taliban

The Nobel laureate urged Muslim leaders to oppose the Afghan Taliban government’s curbs on women and girls’ education.

Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai. Photo: AFP
Global South

Opinion | As West cuts global aid, emerging powers must step up and contribute

Emerging donors from developing nations with significant economic growth should play a bigger role. Kazakhstan is doing so in Central Asia.

Afghan people carry food rations distributed by an Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority programme to support families impacted by natural disasters, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on January 1. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates that 22.9 million people in Afghanistan will require humanitarian aid in 2025. Photo: EPA-EFE
Banking & finance

Macroscope | Rising ‘United States of Eurasia’ will need a development bank to support it

From Eurasia’s vast potential to growing new development banks, emerging market economies are carrying more weight in a global economy.

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Ukraine war

Some Chinese flights avoiding southern Russia after Azerbaijan Airlines crash

Flights to Georgia and Hungary seem to avoid Russia’s Dagestan region after plane carrying 67 allegedly shot down by Russian air defence.

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