“Truly gripping”: The Whirlwind review
If you enjoy watching a good political drama full of secrets, intrigues, conspiracies and power games, then Netflix's South Korean original series, The Whirlwind (돌풍), is for you. Produced by...
Category: Asia
A journey through China: where high-tech modernity meets deep tradition
Nominally, China is a communist nation. In reality, this fascinating country with an ancient culture is possibly the most materialistic society in the world. Walking the streets of Shanghai, as in...
The most beautiful country tourists have never heard of
It was one o’clock in the morning when our plane, full of government delegations from all over the world, landed at the Dushanbe International Airport. The moment I saw a red carpet rolled out on...
Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, is longing to attract visitors
Reporting on the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit on July 3-4 in Astana gave me the opportunity to once again explore the Kazakh capital – one of the most unusual cities in the world....
Who benefits from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana?
The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is often portrayed as a “NATO of the East.” For some authors, the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) is a “Eurasian equivalent of the European...
Amman, an essay
“We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time.” TS Eliot Amman today is a peculiar...
Can water help Tajikistan develop its economy?
Water is vital to the economic development and prosperity of every nation. As it is very rich in terms of water and its hydropower potential, Tajikistan is aiming to position itself as a leading...
Uzbekistan’s rise as an important regional actor
Uzbekistan is an energy-rich Central Asian nation with large reserves of natural gas, oil and coal. As such, it aims to strengthen its economic, political, and military role in the region. But how...
The caged bird sings of peace: Marwan Barghouti
Speaking in his first interview from behind the walls of the Israeli maximum security Megiddo prison in 2007, Marwan Hasib Ibrahim Barghouti’s spirit does not seem to have aged a day. He is defiant...
Why does Indonesia not have free education 21 years after it became law?
In 2003, Indonesia’s government ruled that central and regional governments should provide free basic education for all students. Yet despite this regulation, citizens haven’t seen this...