Author: Sidika Ayaz

Copenhagen, Berlin (11/8 – 42) The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) highlighted severe restrictions imposed by the Tajikistani government on religious freedom during a virtual hearing on July 20, 2023. The commission expressed grave concern over the intensified persecution targeting the Pamiri Ismaili Muslim population of Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO). A Pattern of Repression Since 2009, Tajikistan has enacted a complex web of laws to monitor, control, and restrict religious practices. Not only are women and children under 18 prohibited from attending public religious services, but unregistered religious communities are also denied the right to convene legally.…

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Kazakhstan, the giant of Central Asia, has been bolstering its connections with neighboring nations and major economies across Asia and Europe The global trade landscape is quickly evolving as international supply chains reconfigure themselves following the retreat of globalization, driven by the deepening bifurcation of the international arena between U.S.-led and China-led subsystems. Such a time of rapid change calls for future-oriented leadership informed by strategic foresight and diplomatic acumen. This is particularly true for countries that may find themselves in delicate geo-economic positions, such as Central Asian states. Investments in infrastructure are essential for the economic growth of these…

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European Union foreign ministers agreed on Thursday that the bloc should re-engage with Turkey, but set some conditions and did not endorse Ankara’s calls to revive its moribund membership bid. Turkey has been an official candidate to join the EU for 24 years, but accession talks have stalled since 2016 over the bloc’s concerns about human rights violations and respect for the rule of law. But on July 10, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, in an unexpected move, called for a re-opening of Ankara’s accession talks, linking the idea to Turkey’s approval of Sweden’s bid to join the NATO military alliance.…

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Brussels, Frankfurt (29/5 – 33) European Parliament members have strongly condemned ongoing repression by the authorities of Tajikistan against journalists, activists and protesters in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO). A history of violence escalated extending several years, following confrontational events in November 2021 and May 2022 where dozens of civilians were killed. The European Parliament has since passed a resolution on 7 July 2022. European deputies called on the Tajik government to “put an end to repression against the residents of GBAO”. “We call on the government of Tajikistan to stop persecuting protesters, independent journalists, human rights defenders, lawyers and civil society activists,…

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The practice of denying residence permits to foreigners, which was implemented in 10 districts across Istanbul, has spread to 39 districts. Accordingly, the Turkish Interior Ministry will no longer grant a residence permit to foreigners except in “compulsory cases such as life safety, health, education and international trade,” according to reporting by the daily Milliyet. The implementation will be valid until further notice. According to the 2022 data of the Presidency, 5.4 million foreigners are living in Turkey, of whom 1.2 million are residing in Istanbul, which make up 8% of the megacity’s population. Of this number, 535,025 are Syrian…

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Turkey raised tax on petrol on Sunday to help to fund a 1.12 trillion lira (USD 42.2 billion) increase to its 2023 budget after February’s earthquakes and the May presidential election sent spending soaring. The additional fuel tax will help with a budget deficit that jumped to 263.6 bln lira in the first five months of the year, up from 124.6 bln lira a year earlier, but it could also stoke inflation that had declined to 38.21 percent in June from a 24-year high of 85.51 percent last October. The wider deficit was largely because of increased spending ahead of…

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Turkish handball club Izmir BSB SK reached the quarterfinals of the EHF women’s European Cup after a 33-32 away win over Israeli side Maccabi Arazim Ramat Gan on Saturday evening. Serb center-back Dunja Tasic led Arazim to a 15-14 lead in the first half, but the Turkish side overturned the game through right-back Ece Sozmen, before right-wing Yasemin Ozgur claimed the winner. Sozmen scored a game-high 11 goals and Busra Isikhan added six for Izmir. Tasic scored a team-high nine goals for Arazim. In the first leg, Izmir won 27-20 over the Israelis at home last week.

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Doha: The State of Qatar expressed its hope that the 5th UN Conference on Least Developed Countries (LDC5), which will be inaugurated Sunday in Doha, will constitute a milestone toward fulfilling the commitment of the Doha Program of Action toward the least developed countries (LDCs) and gathering to strengthen cooperation and partnerships with LDCs, considering the conference a historical opportunity for participating parties to reaffirm their commitment to constructive cooperation and multilateral action, and to support the LDCs in addressing the grave challenges. This came in the speech of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed…

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Prospects for expanding partnerships and implementation of new projects in mechanical engineering were discussed by Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov and Senior Vice President of Wabtec Gökhan Bayhan, Kazinform has learnt from the website of the Head of the Kazakh Government. During the meeting, the Head of Government noted that mechanical engineering is one of the most promising sectors of the Republic’s economy. Over the last year, the production volume in the industry has increased by 35%. «We see great potential for further growth and development of this sphere, which requires the inflow of new investments and modern technologies. In this…

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The Kapitan Andreevo-Kapikule border crossing between Bulgaria and Turkey. Bulgaria is planning to expand the capacity of Lesovo, one of its control posts on the border with Turkey, and will build a road to connect it to the Maritsa motorway in southern Bulgaria, regional development minister Ivan Shishkov said over the weekend. Talks on the projected expansion are underway between Bulgarian president Rumen Radev and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Shishkov said, as quoted in a press release. Bulgaria has three border checkpoints along its 259-km land border with Turkey – Kapitan Andreevo, which is the biggest one, Malko…

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