Central Asia - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

News and Features from Central Asia

Iran's Masoud Shojaei (center) challenges South Korea's Lee Myoung-ju (left) and Kim Chang-soo during their World Cup qualifying soccer match in Ulsan.

Iran Qualifies For World Cup

Iran's national soccer team has defeated South Korea 1-0, a result that sends both teams to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Kazakh Prepared Stepson For Suicide Bombing

A court in Kazakhstan's western city of Atyrau imposed a seven-year prison term on a young woman for preparing her 12-year-old stepson to become a suicide bomber.

Two of the "troubling deterioration's" poster boys, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych (back to camera) and Russian President Vladimir Putin, meet in the Tver region on Ukraine in March.

Eurasian Deterioration 'Troubling'

Countries in Central Europe and Central Asia are increasingly being ruled by autocratic governments with little regard for democracy, according to the 2013 "Nations In Transit" report by democracy watchdog Freedom House.

Bishkek Court Acquits Opposition Lawmakers

A Kyrgyz court has acquitted three lawmakers from the opposition Ata-Jurt (Fatherland) party who had been convicted of an attempt to seize power.

Scuffles At Kyrgyz Lawmakers' Appeal

Supporters of the jailed leaders of the opposition Ata-Jurt (Fatherland) party threw shoes and plastic bottles at the judge and prosecutor during a court hearing on June 17.

PHOTO GALLERY: Desertification has increased markedly in the past two decades in Central Asia, causing agricultural yields to plummet. Some estimates suggest that 70 percent of Turkmenistan has become desert, but nearby Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have also suffered precipitously.

UN-Backed Plan To Combat Central Asian Desertification Won't Hold Water

The United Nations launched an ambitious 10-year project to combat desertification in 2006. As the UN marks World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought seven years later, there is little to show for the effort.

Tajik Underground Madrasahs Found

Police in Tajikistan have found about a dozen missing children in two underground madrasahs near Dushanbe.

Dual Russian Citizens To Get Turkmenistan Travel Papers

Turkmen citizens who also hold Russian passports will be eligible to receive Turkmen travel documents.

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev (right) with his Uzbek counterpart Islam Karimov (file photo)

Kazakh, Uzbek Leaders Sign Pact

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev has reached a strategic partnership agreement with his Uzbek counterpart, Islam Karimov, during a visit to Tashkent.