• Central Asia

    The United States and Uzbekistan Presidential Elections: Possible Impact on Afghanistan and Central Asia Policy

    (Timings of the American and Uzbekistan Presidential Elections nearly within a month together with the functioning of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and forthcoming Tripartite meeting of Russia, China and Pakistan over Afghanistan may likely lead to major policy shifts in America’s Afghanistan and Central and South Asian policy trends).   BACKGROUND: …

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  • East Asia

    Japan and Russia to ease visa rules

    Japan and Russia have agreed to promote tourism and ease visa requirements for each other’s citizens under an economic cooperation plan proposed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in May, Japanese officials said Friday. Some other aspects of the eight-point action plan — such as cooperation on pediatrics, and promotion…

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  • Central Asia

    Yildirim to visit Russia in December

    Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım will pay a visit to Russia in the first week of December in a bid to accelerate the ongoing normalization process between Ankara and Moscow. Yıldırım and Russian Prime Minister Dimitry Medvedev will chair the meetings in Moscow, Hurriyet reports. According to sources, the main…

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  • East Asia

    Bridge to nowhere?

    The New Yalu Bridge separates the twin cities of Sinuiju and Dandong, lying opposite each other on the Chinese and North Korean sides of the Yalu River respectively. The very existence of the bridge, however, is nowhere to be found in local Chinese media. State censors do not want a…

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  • East Asia

    What Trump’s rise to power means for the future of China-U.S. relations?

    Curtis Stone (People’s Daily Online) The rise of Donald Trump has plunged the world into a period of deep uncertainty about the policies and impact of the next U.S. administration. For China, the big question is what U.S foreign policy will look like with the next administration. Nobody knows what…

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  • Central Asia

    Russia and Iran in oil swap talks

    Tehran is in talks with Russian companies on petroleum swap deals, Iran’s deputy oil minister for international affairs Amirhossein Zamaninia said. “Yes, we are,” he said when asked whether the country is in talks with Russia on swap deals, Financial Tribune reported cting TASS. According to deputy minister, initially the…

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  • East Asia

    The Trump Administration: The Outlook For U.S. Foreign Policy

    Richard Giragosian – Director, Regional Studies Center (RSC) For many Americans, and especially for supporters of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, the victory of Donald Trump as the country’s next president was a serious surprise. For many others, and most notably for his vehemently loyal backers, the victory was a refreshing…

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  • East Asia

    Korea-US FTA in unprecedented jeopardy

    Lee Han-soo – The Korea Times Donald Trump’s election as the next U.S. President is expected to put the free trade pact between South Korean and the U.S. in grave jeopardy. Trump has repeatedly blasted the deal as “catastrophic” and “unfair” to the U.S. “Hillary rammed through the job-killing trade…

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  • East Asia

    S. Korea to tackle potential risks from Trump’s victory: finance minister

    South Korea’s finance minister said Wednesday that Donald Trump’s surprise victory in the U.S. presidential election is feared to send a shockwave through the global financial market and his government will stand firm to deal with possible risks. “It is inevitable that the world financial market will feel the impact…

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  • East Asia

    High-speed rail deal among 21 signed by China and Russia

    Twenty-one agreements were signed between China and Russia on Monday to further promote cooperation in various fields, including on high-speed railways, during Premier Li Keqiang’s visit to St. Petersburg. Li and his Russian counterpart, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, witnessed the signing of the agreements — which also included civil nuclear…

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