Turkmenistan

• July 30, 2025

  RFE/RL Spotlight: Meet Central Asia's Athletes Reaching The Heights Of The Premier League And Olympics

  RFE/RL spotlights five Central Asian athletes who have turned adversity into triumph. From a paralyzed man turned ultramarathoner to a blind Paralympian and a Premier League soccer pioneer, these remarkable sportspeople have shown how resilience and courage can transcend barriers and inspire others.

• July 30, 2025

  Against All Odds: How Central Asia’s Sports Heroes Are Changing Their Nations

  In a region often overshadowed on the global sports stage, Central Asia is producing extraordinary stories of courage, endurance, and identity. The personal victories of athletes who have overcome physical, political, and social barriers have become collective triumphs.

• July 26, 2025

  ‘Daughter Diplomacy’ On Rise In Central Asia As Leaders Seek To Preserve Dynasties

  In a theatrical session of dynastic diplomacy, the former president of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, and his daughter, Oguljahan Atabaeva, traveled to Baku in mid-July and were received by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and his daughter, Leyla Aliyeva.

• July 20, 2025

  Central Asia’s Evolving Censorship: From Physical Threats To Algorithmic Purges

  Across Kazakhstan, and more broadly in Central Asia, an evolving censorship achieved by various means -- from algorithmic deletions to orchestrated account takeovers and from legal persecution to digital coercion -- is plaguing the region's fledgling independent media.

• June 09, 2025

  Central Asian Leaders Groom Their Offspring As Successors With Moscow Meetings

  When Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Uzbek leader Shavkat Mirziyoev travel to Moscow for talks with senior officials, it's just another series of meetings between leaders with deep ties. But a series of recent meetings that involved their children told a new story: the succession process is on.

• June 05, 2025

  Trump Revives Travel Ban, Barring Nationals From Iran, Afghanistan, And Elsewhere Entry To US As Of Next Week

  US President Donald Trump on June 4 signed a proclamation resurrecting the travel ban from his first term, ordering that from next week citizens of 12 countries, including Afghanistan and Iran, will not be allowed to enter the United States.

• May 08, 2025

  Migrants Beaten In Moscow Cafe As Crackdown On Central Asians Intensifies

  Migrant workers in Moscow face rising police violence amid intensified crackdowns targeting Central Asians. Despite no violations, raids are increasing, fueling fear and mass deportations after recent terrorist-linked arrests and new powers granted to police.

• April 23, 2025

  Uzbek Farmers Say They're Being Forced To Surrender Land To Chinese Firms

  Farmers in Uzbekistan allege they are being forced to cede fertile land to Chinese businesses under pressure from local authorities, fueling fears of deepening economic dependence on Beijing and its growing influence across Central Asia.

• April 17, 2025

  Russia Removes Afghanistan's Taliban From Terror List In Step Toward Recognition

  Russia’s Supreme Court removed Afghanistan's militant Taliban rulers from its list of banned terrorist groups in a step toward recognizing the group that seized power in 2021 as international forces withdrew from the war-torn country.

• April 10, 2025

  Trump's Tariffs, Like Russian Sanctions, Benefit Chinese EVs In Central Asia

  Central Asia is becoming a key market for Chinese cars and their production, with consumers embracing the vehicles’ affordability and governments eager to attract billions in investment from state-backed Chinese firms.

• April 04, 2025

  Samarkand Summit Marks A New Era In EU-Central Asia Relations Amid Geopolitical Challenges

  The European Union says it is entering a "new era" in its relationship with Central Asian nations following a summit aimed at making inroads in a region dominated by Russia and China.

• April 03, 2025

  EU Aims To Elevate Ties With Central Asia At Landmark Samarkand Summit

  The upcoming European Union-Central Asia summit, to be held on April 3-4 in the Uzbek city of Samarkand, is seen by some observers as a potential watershed moment, which can establish Brussels’ Global Gateway strategy as a genuine competitor to China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

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