Author: Emma Booth

Beijing, Dushanbe announced upgrading of diplomatic relations. Chinese President Xi Jinping has promised to defend the “territorial integrity” of Tajikistan as he announced a boost to diplomatic relations with the neighbouring country on a rare visit. Xi arrived in the Tajik capital Dushanbe, Thursday night from Kazakhstan following a gathering of leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), during which he held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and urged the bloc to “resist external interference”. Central Asia is a vital link in China’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive infrastructure project that Beijing has used to expand…

House Democrats have introduced a bill that would strip Secret Service protection from convicted felons sentenced to prison, a move directly targeting former President Trump who is currently on criminal trial in New York City for alleged hush money payments made during the 2016 election campaign and faces several other cases which could land him behind bars. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., the former chair of the now disbanded Jan. 6 congressional committee, introduced legislation that would automatically nix Secret Service protection for those who have been convicted of a federal or state felony that carries a minimum one-year prison term. The proposed bill is…

Dubai/Astana (10 June – 60). The Pamiris are an ethnic minority group in Tajikistan, culturally distinct from the majority Tajik population. They have faced persecution and discrimination in their mountain homeland bordering Afghanistan that some experts say amounts to ethnic cleansing and even genocide. One of the lead persecutors is Ministry of Internal Affairs “Maj. Gen.” Shorukh Syedzada, a former football team manager with no law enforcement experience and a confidante of the president’s son and heir designate. The Pamiris continue to be marginalized and oppressed by the authorities. As a result, many Pamiris have been forced to flee their…

Moscow (28/2). Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that non-governmental organizations in Central Asia have stepped up their anti-Russian activities amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army. Shoigu said this at the board of the Russian Ministry of Defense on February 27. According to him, there are more than 100 “large pro-Western non-governmental organisations” operating in Central Asia, which have more than 16,000 representative offices and branches. “Against the backdrop of the special military operation, these NGOs have significantly increased their anti-Russian activities in order to reduce military-technical, economic and cultural cooperation between the Central Asian states and Russia.…

All men in Russia are required to do a year-long military service, or equivalent training during higher education, from the age of 18. Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree setting out the routine spring conscription campaign, calling up 150,000 citizens for statutory military service, a document posted on the Kremlin’s website showed on Sunday (31 March). All men in Russia are required to do a year-long military service, or equivalent training during higher education, from the age of 18. In July Russia’s lower house of parliament voted to raise the maximum age at which men can be conscripted to 30…

In the US, gun violence and shared trauma is normalized for young people – which could be why many are open to firearm ownership When MaryAnn Alvarado asks her students if they know how to get a gun, their response always takes her aback. “Everyone raises their hand,” she said. Alvarado, 36, runs Teens on Target, a program operated by YouthAlive! in Oakland, California, that trains middle- and high-schoolers to become violence prevention advocates in their own communities. For many of the teens she sees, especially those coming from underserved neighborhoods, gun violence is normalized, she explained, or they believe…

The newly created Oxus Acquisition Corp is a next step for Kenes Rakishev to acquire companies specialized in the red-hot area of energy transition, batteries and EV’s. Kenes Rakishev, who is heavily involved in the modern tech investment scene rolls out his strategy to acquire more assets. Oxus Acquisition Corp, created by Kazakh businessman Kenes Rakishev, wants to raise $ 150 million to acquire a company specializing in technologies in the field of «energy transfer». The prospectus of the IPO of Oxus Acquisition, which plans to get a listing on NASDAQ, was published on the website of the US Securities and Exchange…

The state may have moved right in recent years, but new polls suggest support for abortion rights remains strong. Republicans worked for decades to get Roe v. Wade overturned, saying all the while that the issue of abortion should be “returned to the states.” But what if voters in a Republican-leaning state reject the GOP’s position? Then they’ve got a different problem: democracy. Now Ohio Republicans are trying to duck the will of the voters with some clever maneuvering. The state’s voters will decide on two ballot initiatives in two separate elections in a matter of months. One is explicitly about abortion,…

In the latest data from the Ministry of Defence (MOD), fresh insights into the state of the AURORA project have been disclosed. The AURORA project is aimed at enhancing the manufacturing capability for the plutonium component of the UK’s nuclear warheads. According to the MOD’s March 2023 Government Major Projects Portfolio data, the AURORA project’s Senior Responsible Owner’s Delivery Confidence Assessment rating is categorised as “Amber” for the fourth quarter of 2023. This status indicates challenges in areas such as resource management but also suggests steady progress towards the set goals. The data release provides a quote on the project’s…

As sales for the state’s recreational cannabis industry take off, New Jersey’s decade-old medical marijuana program is shrinking every month. Medical marijuana sales are nearly half of what they were six months ago, and more than 20,000 patients dropped out of the medical program since its peak in May 2022, according to state data. Experts say that’s expected for a state now offering recreational cannabis, but they want the Legislature and state agencies to continue emphasizing the importance of the medical marijuana program. “It’s not an uncommon occurrence for medical programs to dip down when there are other more economical sources,” said Ken…