https://www.rferl.org/z/651 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is an international news organization serving Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East, and the Balkans. Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is an international news organization serving Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East, and the Balkans. false en Copyright 2026 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Tue, 03 Nov 2026 16:17:33 +0100 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL RFE/RL Rferl.org kaisa.k.alliksaar@gmail.com Russian forces are seeking further advances after capturing Avdiyivka, and the $60 million U.S. aid package is still stuck in Congress. Dara Massicot, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, joins the host to discuss a crucial juncture in Moscow’s war against Ukraine. https://www.rferl.org/a/podcast-week-ahead-russia-gutterman-weapons-war/32847449.html https://www.rferl.org/a/podcast-week-ahead-russia-gutterman-weapons-war/32847449.html Mon, 04 Mar 2024 15:55:17 +0100 RFE/RL Russian forces are seeking further advances after capturing Avdiyivka, and the $60 million U.S. aid package is still stuck in Congress. Dara Massicot, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, joins the host to discuss a crucial juncture in Moscow’s war against Ukraine. 00:20:05 With an eye on Afghanistan’s resource wealth, Beijing is slowly deepening its ties with the Taliban, but is the relationship built to last? Kabul-based journalist Ali Latifi and the German Marshall Fund’s Andrew Small join host Reid Standish to explore Beijing’s complicated history with the group. https://www.rferl.org/a/china-eurasia-taliban-afghanistan-standish-latifi/32653417.html https://www.rferl.org/a/china-eurasia-taliban-afghanistan-standish-latifi/32653417.html Wed, 25 Oct 2023 11:06:27 +0200 RFE/RL With an eye on Afghanistan’s resource wealth, Beijing is slowly deepening its ties with the Taliban, but is the relationship built to last? Kabul-based journalist Ali Latifi and the German Marshall Fund’s Andrew Small join host Reid Standish to explore Beijing’s complicated history with the group. 00:33:49 Tamuna Chkareuli, a photojournalist working with RFE/RL’s Georgia Service, joins host Reid Standish for a special episode from their reporting trip across Georgia about how a $1 billion Chinese-built highway is transforming the country and bringing hope and scandal in the process. https://www.rferl.org/a/china-eurasia-standish-podcast-georgia-chkareuli/32632507.html https://www.rferl.org/a/china-eurasia-standish-podcast-georgia-chkareuli/32632507.html Wed, 11 Oct 2023 07:55:57 +0200 Reid Standish Tamuna Chkareuli, a photojournalist working with RFE/RL’s Georgia Service, joins host Reid Standish for a special episode from their reporting trip across Georgia about how a $1 billion Chinese-built highway is transforming the country and bringing hope and scandal in the process. 00:28:07 The Belarusian state has provided plenty of support for Russia's war on Ukraine but has resisted sending troops. What's behind that reluctance – and why has the death of the country's longtime foreign minister sparked so much speculation? Katia Glod, a fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, joins host Steve Gutterman to discuss. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-week-ahead-gutterman-moscow-minsk-ukraine-war/32162740.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-week-ahead-gutterman-moscow-minsk-ukraine-war/32162740.html Mon, 05 Dec 2022 16:02:29 +0100 Steve Gutterman The Belarusian state has provided plenty of support for Russia's war on Ukraine but has resisted sending troops. What's behind that reluctance – and why has the death of the country's longtime foreign minister sparked so much speculation? Katia Glod, a fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, joins host Steve Gutterman to discuss. 00:30:22 As Chinese leader Xi Jinping stepped back out onto the world stage at the G20 summit in Bali, it was another litmus test for his support for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Beijing has continued to send signals that it is becoming increasingly uncomfortable with Russia’s war in Ukraine and ongoing nuclear saber-rattling. Western leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, have also called for China to play a larger mediating role. How should these developments be interpreted? How close are Xi and Putin in reality? Is this a sign of a new direction for Chinese diplomacy or just the latest phase of its ongoing balancing act? Raffaello Pantucci, senior fellow at London’s Royal United Services Institute and at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, joins host Reid Standish to discuss. https://www.rferl.org/a/talking-china-eurasia-podcast-standish/32133779.html https://www.rferl.org/a/talking-china-eurasia-podcast-standish/32133779.html Wed, 16 Nov 2022 15:55:30 +0100 Reid Standish As Chinese leader Xi Jinping stepped back out onto the world stage at the G20 summit in Bali, it was another litmus test for his support for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Beijing has continued to send signals that it is becoming increasingly uncomfortable with Russia’s war in Ukraine and ongoing nuclear saber-rattling. Western leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, have also called for China to play a larger mediating role. How should these developments be interpreted? How close are Xi and Putin in reality? Is this a sign of a new direction for Chinese diplomacy or just the latest phase of its ongoing balancing act? Raffaello Pantucci, senior fellow at London’s Royal United Services Institute and at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, joins host Reid Standish to discuss. 00:49:18 https://www.rferl.org/a/31975092.html https://www.rferl.org/a/31975092.html Fri, 05 Aug 2022 09:18:07 +0200 Bermet Talant 00:32:52 Flights have resumed, borders have reopened, and COVID-19 restrictions have eased. But the tourism industry in Central Asia doesn't seem to be fully back on its feet yet. https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-live-tourism-tajikistan-kyrgyzstan-bermet-talant/31955104.html https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-live-tourism-tajikistan-kyrgyzstan-bermet-talant/31955104.html Fri, 22 Jul 2022 09:11:52 +0200 RFE/RL Flights have resumed, borders have reopened, and COVID-19 restrictions have eased. But the tourism industry in Central Asia doesn't seem to be fully back on its feet yet. 00:41:28 In a live discussion, we spoke with Asem Zhapisheva, founder of Masa Media, an independent news website in Kazakhstan, and Nikita Makarenko, a freelance journalist from Uzbekistan, to talk about their difficult work conditions, the line between journalism and activism, and the future of journalism. https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-live-bermet-talant-journalism-central-asia/31944632.html https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-live-bermet-talant-journalism-central-asia/31944632.html Fri, 15 Jul 2022 07:49:09 +0200 Bermet Talant In a live discussion, we spoke with Asem Zhapisheva, founder of Masa Media, an independent news website in Kazakhstan, and Nikita Makarenko, a freelance journalist from Uzbekistan, to talk about their difficult work conditions, the line between journalism and activism, and the future of journalism. 00:34:16 Over the past five years, Central Asian countries have already seen some of the worst droughts, which has led to shortages of water for irrigation and hydropower. This, in turn, pushed prices for food up and caused electricity shortages. And in 2021, the deadliest border conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in years started as a water dispute between local residents, although other factors played a role too. https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-climate-change-talant/31924278.html https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-climate-change-talant/31924278.html Fri, 01 Jul 2022 07:33:45 +0200 Bermet Talant Over the past five years, Central Asian countries have already seen some of the worst droughts, which has led to shortages of water for irrigation and hydropower. This, in turn, pushed prices for food up and caused electricity shortages. And in 2021, the deadliest border conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in years started as a water dispute between local residents, although other factors played a role too. 00:33:41 In Central Asia, power and wealth are often kept and passed down in a family. But the concept of blood ties goes beyond immediate or extended family members. Political alliances and influential clans are also organized around tribal or regional kinship that goes back centuries to the times when today’s Central Asian nations were a group of separate tribes. https://www.rferl.org/a/kazakhstan-tribalism-kinship-bermet-twitter-spaces/31913392.html https://www.rferl.org/a/kazakhstan-tribalism-kinship-bermet-twitter-spaces/31913392.html Fri, 24 Jun 2022 11:04:50 +0200 Bermet Talant In Central Asia, power and wealth are often kept and passed down in a family. But the concept of blood ties goes beyond immediate or extended family members. Political alliances and influential clans are also organized around tribal or regional kinship that goes back centuries to the times when today’s Central Asian nations were a group of separate tribes. 00:33:23 COVID-19, severe droughts, supply problems caused by the pandemic, and, most recently, the war in Ukraine have all been contributing factors to a steep rise in the cost of living in Central Asia. https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-food-prices/31902354.html https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-food-prices/31902354.html Fri, 17 Jun 2022 08:20:32 +0200 Bermet Talant COVID-19, severe droughts, supply problems caused by the pandemic, and, most recently, the war in Ukraine have all been contributing factors to a steep rise in the cost of living in Central Asia. 00:33:31 The conditions for LGBT people and access to information about them vary across Central Asia. https://www.rferl.org/a/audio-life-as-lgbtq-person-in-central-asia/31892108.html https://www.rferl.org/a/audio-life-as-lgbtq-person-in-central-asia/31892108.html Fri, 10 Jun 2022 08:33:12 +0200 Bermet Talant The conditions for LGBT people and access to information about them vary across Central Asia. 00:41:22 homosexuality, Central Asia Throughout its entire post-Soviet history, Turkmenistan has been ruled by eccentric dictators. It has long been at the bottom of international rankings on press freedom and civil liberties. Most of the population scrapes by, even though the state’s wealth comes from gas and oil. Corruption is rife. And the government controls most aspects of life. https://www.rferl.org/a/twitter-spaces-talant-turkmenistan/31881783.html https://www.rferl.org/a/twitter-spaces-talant-turkmenistan/31881783.html Fri, 03 Jun 2022 10:13:29 +0200 Bermet Talant Throughout its entire post-Soviet history, Turkmenistan has been ruled by eccentric dictators. It has long been at the bottom of international rankings on press freedom and civil liberties. Most of the population scrapes by, even though the state’s wealth comes from gas and oil. Corruption is rife. And the government controls most aspects of life. 00:32:26 The number of Russian speakers in the region has indeed declined since the collapse of the Soviet Union. But Russian remains strong, especially in cities. It is still the language of education, science, services, and bureaucracy. Official policies and public attitudes among the Russian-speaking are gradually shifting, however, toward a more prominent role for native languages. https://www.rferl.org/a/twitter-spaces-central-asia/31871153.html https://www.rferl.org/a/twitter-spaces-central-asia/31871153.html Fri, 27 May 2022 07:59:39 +0200 Bermet Talant The number of Russian speakers in the region has indeed declined since the collapse of the Soviet Union. But Russian remains strong, especially in cities. It is still the language of education, science, services, and bureaucracy. Official policies and public attitudes among the Russian-speaking are gradually shifting, however, toward a more prominent role for native languages. 00:37:14 Understanding what’s next for Kazakhstan after a week that changed the country forever was the focus of a live Twitter Spaces discussion hosted by RFE/RL on January 13. https://www.rferl.org/a/twitter-spaces-kazakhstan-unrest-standish/31663355.html https://www.rferl.org/a/twitter-spaces-kazakhstan-unrest-standish/31663355.html Thu, 20 Jan 2022 13:19:01 +0100 RFE/RL Understanding what’s next for Kazakhstan after a week that changed the country forever was the focus of a live Twitter Spaces discussion hosted by RFE/RL on January 13. 01:08:32 Since the Taliban’s August takeover of the country, Beijing’s attention has increasingly turned towards Afghanistan and its neighbors in Central and South Asia. Unpacking all this and more was the subject of a live Twitter Spaces discussion hosted by RFE/RL on October 21 with Sirojiddin Tolibov, managing editor at RFE/RL's Tajik Service; Niva Yau, a Bishkek-based researcher from the Foreign Policy Research Institute and the OSCE academy; and Raffaello Pantucci, a senior associate fellow at London's Royal United Services Institute. The talk was hosted by RFE/RL's China correspondent, Reid Standish. https://www.rferl.org/a/china-eurasia-standish-afghanistan/31530176.html https://www.rferl.org/a/china-eurasia-standish-afghanistan/31530176.html Tue, 26 Oct 2021 11:46:00 +0200 Reid Standish Since the Taliban’s August takeover of the country, Beijing’s attention has increasingly turned towards Afghanistan and its neighbors in Central and South Asia. Unpacking all this and more was the subject of a live Twitter Spaces discussion hosted by RFE/RL on October 21 with Sirojiddin Tolibov, managing editor at RFE/RL's Tajik Service; Niva Yau, a Bishkek-based researcher from the Foreign Policy Research Institute and the OSCE academy; and Raffaello Pantucci, a senior associate fellow at London's Royal United Services Institute. The talk was hosted by RFE/RL's China correspondent, Reid Standish. 00:50:35 https://www.rferl.org/a/29509135.html https://www.rferl.org/a/29509135.html Tue, 25 Sep 2018 14:45:00 +0200 RFE/RL 00:04:01