Telephone Scammers in Kyrgyzstan Begin Using AI Tools
Kyrgyzstan has recorded an increase in telephone fraud cases involving AI. According to law enforcement agencies, dozens of citizens have fallen victim to such schemes, with total losses amounting to millions of soms. Fraudsters use AI tools to imitate voices and images, posing as law enforcement officers, representatives of the...
Kyrgyzstan’s Crypto Market Generates More Tax Revenue Than Country’s Largest Bazaar
Kyrgyzstan’s virtual asset market has rapidly become one of the fastest-growing segments of the national economy. In the first nine months of 2025 alone, the country’s cryptocurrency turnover exceeded $7.9 billion, a figure that industry insiders believe could continue to rise substantially. Kyrgyz law currently permits fully legal cryptocurrency transactions,...
Up to Eighty Persian Leopards Now Roam Turkmenistan
Between 60 and 80 Caucasian leopards, also known as Persian leopards, currently inhabit Turkmenistan, according to extensive monitoring conducted throughout 2025. The findings confirm not only the stable presence of this rare predator in key ecological zones but also provide encouraging signs of population recovery. A recent report by Conservation...
Opinion: Afghanistan and Central Asia – Security Without Illusions
Over the past year, Afghanistan has become neither markedly more stable nor dramatically more dangerous, despite how it is often portrayed in public discourse. There has been neither the collapse that many feared, nor the breakthrough that some had hoped for. Instead, a relatively unchanged but fragile status quo has...
Kyrgyz President Dismisses Right-Hand Man to “Prevent a Split in Society”
A political earthquake hit Kyrgyzstan on February 10. The tandem of President Sadyr Japarov and security chief Kamchybek Tashiyev was seemingly broken when Japarov dismissed Tashiyev from his post. The reason given for relieving Tashiyev of his position was that it was “in the interests of our state, in order...
Pannier and Hillard’s Spotlight on Central Asia: New Episode – B5+1, Sanctions, and a New Constitution – Out Now
As Managing Editor of The Times of Central Asia, I’m delighted that, in partnership with the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs, from October 19, we are the home of the Spotlight on Central Asia podcast. Chaired by seasoned broadcasters Bruce Pannier of RFE/RL’s long-running Majlis podcast and Michael Hillard...
A Eurasian Imprint on Judo’s Paris Grand Slam
The Paris Judo Grand Slam took place on February 7–8 at a sold-out Accor Arena, drawing more than 20,000 spectators to one of the sport’s most prestigious annual events. Held under the auspices of the International Judo Federation (IJF) as a flagship stop on the IJF World Tour, the competition...
Ukrainian Ambassador to Kazakhstan: “The War Will End This Year. I Truly Believe In That.”
As the war between Russia and Ukraine approaches its fifth year, diplomatic efforts to reshape trade routes, energy flows, and regional partnerships are intensifying far beyond the battlefield. For Ukraine, Central Asia has emerged as an increasingly important economic and logistical partner, particularly as Kyiv seeks alternatives to disrupted transport...
Sunkar Podcast
Central Asia and the Troubled Southern Route
