Central Asia

Jovid always dreamed of becoming a police officer, but now he finds himself taking exams to become a tax collector.

Presidents of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) have gathered in the Kyrgyz lakeside resort of Cholpon-Ata for what is being billed as an informal summit.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev arrived in Tajikistan on July 30, beginning a two-day trip with important ramifications for Central Asian security.

The Northern Distribution Network, an American-assembled logistical pipeline designed to ease and expand the flow of supplies to coalition forces in Afghanistan, is off to a lackluster start.

Russia's largest air freight carrier, the Volga-Dnepr Group, says it is "first in line" to transport US military goods to Afghanistan.

Even as a growing number of labor migrants from Central Asia and the Caucasus are returning to their homelands due to the global economic downturn, hate crimes against them are continuing unabated, independent monitors in Russia report.

Russia may soon find itself struggling to attract labor migrants. The global economic crisis is making Russia a less appealing place to work and those currently in the country are leaving for better pay and conditions in Europe, demographers say.

The countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia experienced a decline in their democratic development in 2008, according to a report issued June 30 by the American watchdog group Freedom House.