-
Central Asia
Afghan presidential election race kicks off with candidate nominations
Afghanistan’s presidential race kicked off Monday as election authorities began accepting the nominations of would-be candidates, the start of a wide-open race whose winner will oversee the final phases of the withdrawal of U.S.-led troops amid a relentless Taliban insurgency. The election, set for April 5, will determine who succeeds…
Read More » -
Central Asia
Kazakh director Zhanabek Zhetiru: Recreating myth in cinema
As Otilija Kerbelyte says, in cinema we find the myths and legends portrayed with fantastic genres, special effects, and mythological creatures such as elves and orcs in the The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Mythical creatures usually wear the clothes, which no human would wear (e.g. faun and fairies in…
Read More » -
Central Asia
Strong showing for Navalny in Moscow mayoral race
Moscow’s incumbent mayor has been re-elected with 51 percent of the vote, just enough to avoid a run-off against opposition leader Alexei Navalny, election officials said Monday. The Moscow Election Commission said Monday morning that Sergei Sobyanin got just over half the vote while Navalny, who energized the race into…
Read More » -
East Asia
Chinese, Uzbek presidents hold talks on boosting ties
Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Uzbek counterpart Islam Karimov held talks here Monday on further development of bilateral relations and cooperation. Xi is in Tashkent for a state visit as a guest of Karimov, who went to the airport to receive the Chinese president on Sunday evening. “I…
Read More » -
East Asia
G20 leaders adopt St. Petersburg development strategy
The Group of Twenty (G20) leaders on Thursday approved here a strategy outlining development priorities for the group members over the medium term. The St. Petersburg Development Strategy, prepared by the development working panel of G20, detailed such priorities as reinforcing G20’s commitment to shared growth and improving the group’s…
Read More » -
Central Asia
Omani Sultan visits Iran to mediate negotiation between Iran and West
Iran welcomed the leader of neighboring Oman Sunday in a visit that has raised hopes that Omani mediation could help ease tensions between Iran and Western powers over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. Omani Sultan Qaboos was scheduled to focus on bilateral and international affairs during his three-day visit. In the past,…
Read More » -
Central Asia
Turkish PM accuses Israel of being behind ouster of Egypt’s President
Turkey’s prime minister on Tuesday accused Israel of being behind the ouster of Egypt’s Islamist President Mohammed Morsi, offering as the only evidence for his claim a statement by a Jewish French intellectual during a meeting with an Israeli official. The Egyptian Cabinet rejected Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s statement as baseless…
Read More » -
Central Asia
Former Pakistani President Musharraf indicted for murder of ex-PM Bhutto
In an unprecedented ruling that tests the military’s aura of inviolability, a court indicted former president and army chief Pervez Musharraf Tuesday on murder charges stemming from the 2007 assassination of ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Musharraf, who became a key U.S. ally in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001…
Read More » -
Central Asia
World’s first orbiting work of art etched into satellite to be launched on Oct 29
Officials in Glasgow, Scotland, pose in this recent photo with a satellite that will carry artwork created by Los Angeles artists Jon Gibson and Amanda White, not shown, in British company Clyde Space facility in Glasgow. Posing from left are Craig Clark of Clyde Space, Serkey Krutikov, consul general of…
Read More » -
Central Asia
Usain Bolt wins gold again in men’s 100-meter at World Athletics Championships
Jamaica’s Usain Bolt celebrates after winning gold in the Men’s 100-meter final at the World Athletics Championships in the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, Aug. 11, 2013. Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, center, starts in the men’s 100-meter final at the World Athletics Championships in the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, Russia,…
Read More »