By Marlies Linke* ALMATY, Kazakhstan | 17 February 2025 (IDN) — The sixteenth BRICS summit, held in Kazan, Russia from 22 to 24 October 2024, bore the slogan “Strengthening Multilateralism for Fair Global Development and Security”. According to its concluding statement, the summit was intended to demonstrate that the participating Global South countries are expanding […]
From Crisis to Comeback: The Aral Sea’s Recovery
By Sophie Wenkel* VIENNA | 9 February 2025 (IDN) — The Aral Sea was once one of the largest lakes in the world. But within just a few decades, human actions nearly dried it up. The surrounding regions in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have faced drought, soil salinization, and severe sandstorms. However, in recent years, international […]
Kazakhstan Proposes a Digital Solutions Centre for Sustainable Development
By Aar Jay BERLIN | ASTANA | 6 September 2024 (IDN) — The Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan has proposed the establishment of a Digital Solutions Centre for Sustainable Development at a high-level conference organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Government of Kazakhstan. The […]
Restoration Of the Aral Sea Requires Concerted Efforts
By Marat Bisengaliev* This article was issued by IPS-Journal. ALMATY, Kazakhstan | 1 September 2024 (IDN) — As a violinist, I have witnessed how music can bridge divides and inspire collective action. It is imperative that the global community harnesses this same spirit of unity and creativity to address a dire and unprecedented environmental catastrophe […]
Kazakhstan Hosts UNODA-backed Non-proliferation Regional Conference
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | NEW YORK |19 August 2024 (IDN) — Nearly twenty years ago, the United Nations Security Council took a consequential step to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) by unanimously adopting resolution 1540 (2004). This global instrument requires Governments to prevent non-State actors or terrorists from acquiring, proliferating […]
Kazakhstan Willing to Share Nuclear Disarmament Expertise with N. Korea
By Ji Da-gyum, The Korea Herald ASTANA, Kazakhstan | 11 August 2024 (IDN) — Kazakhstan is willing to share its nuclear disarmament expertise with North Korea, emphasizing its own journey of voluntarily relinquishing nuclear weapons inherited from the Soviet Union and subsequently achieving substantial economic growth, Kazakhstan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Roman Vassilenko said. “We want […]
Kazakhstan and UN to Help Bolster Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | 2 August 2024 (IDN) — As the spectre of a Nuclear Armageddon haunts our planet, the Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan is joining hands with the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) to organize a workshop—first in five years—to bolster the five Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (NWFZ) treaties. States-parties to the five […]
Kazakhstan: A Peacemaker in the Ukraine War?
By Alexandra Sitenko* BERLIN | 27 April 2024 (IDN) — The war in Ukraine has presented countries that have close political, economic and historical ties with Russia with a difficult task: On the one hand, they cannot sever their relations with Moscow; on the other, they do not want to fall out of favour internationally. […]
UN Mission Chief Calls for Taliban’s Return To ‘International Norms’
By J Nastranis NEW YORK | 20 December 2023 (IDN) — A lack of progress in resolving human rights issues is a key reason behind the current impasse between Afghanistan and the international community, the UN Special Representative to Afghanistan told the Security Council on 20 December. Ms. Roza Otunbayeva, who heads the UN Assistance […]
Exposing the Emerging Orientalist Narrative of Peace and Security for Afghanistan — Part II
By Bashir Mobasher and Zakira Rasooli* Toda Peace Institute issued this article, which is being republished with their permission. INDIANA, USA | DOHAN, Qatar | 12 December 2023 (IDN) — Edward Said defines Orientalism as a series of representations of the ‘East,’ in the form of ‘knowledge’ (and beyond), which does not reflect the intrinsic […]