Dushanbe these days is sadly filled with smog. But the rare clear days still reveal the stunning views that I grew up seeing literally out of my bedroom windows. Just 10 years ago, before the current senseless urban redevelopment, this is what one saw from anywhere in my hometown.

Working with local journalists & foreign correspondents to tell underreported stories was undoubtedly the best part about editing The Beet. With the newsletter pausing publication, writing this best of 2025 list was bittersweet. meduza.io/en/feature/2... @meduza.io

Sadly, with The Calvert Journal gone and @meduza.io’s The Beet pausing its work in 2026, the space to cover underreported and unusual stories about Central Asia has shrunk to essentially nothing. It’s been an honor and a pleasure to work with @eilishhart.bsky.social. Support independent journalism!

Out on the shelves and online today: my report for The Economist on how #Kyrgyzstan is backsliding into authoritarianism under Sadyr Japarov, who came to power in a popular revolution but now quashes dissent www.economist.com/asia/2025/12...

In Tajikistan’s Siyoma Valley, watchman Ivan Bragin bears witness to the local consequences of the global climate crisis. For The Beet, @skhashimov.bsky.social tells his fascinating story. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

When @skhashimov.bsky.social pitched this story, I jumped at the chance to commission it for The Beet. Ivan Bragin’s fascinating life as the lone resident of Tajikistan’s Siyoma Valley offers us a window into the local consequences of a global issue. Read it now! meduza.io/en/feature/2...

Tajikistan's Siyoma Valley is slowly withering away. Climate change, overgrazing, pollution are threatening the valley's fragile ecosystem. I've toured the valley many times and spoke to its sole resident about what these changes mean for the rest of Central Asia. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

Kyrgyzstan requested a Red Notice for Rinat Tuhvatshin, co-founder of Kloop, in an apparent attempt to silence him abroad. The government has been cracking down on all independent media critical of its actions. www.occrp.org/en/news/inte...

AI browsers like OpenAI's Atlas and Perplexity's Comet have ways of getting around paywalls and crawler restrictions to access publisher content. And sometimes, if they can't access an article, they'll just recreate it using 'digital breadcrumbs'

A court in Kyrgyzstan declared investigative media outlets "extremist," banned them from publishing, and made distribution of their work illegal.

Excited for my first byline in @newlinesmag.bsky.social, reported with support from the Overseas Press Club Foundation!

Three independent news outlets in Kyrgyzstan — including OCCRP member center Kloop — have been branded “extremist organizations,” with a court banning all their online and social media activity. www.occrp.org/en/news/kyrg...

Tajikistan has arguably the weakest army in the CIS while Russia is a nuclear power with a large foreign base in Dushanbe. An equivalent of ~50% of Tajikistan’s GDP is remittances from Russia and the country owes a lot of money to China, Russia’s ally. Unrealistic 🤷‍♂️ www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/202...

The current US administration is the easiest one so far for Central Asia to work with. Business interests can be used to attract attention & there's no need for demonstrative distancing from Russia or commitment to democratic reforms. @ceip-politika.bsky.social carnegieendowment.org/russia-euras...

Investigative journalism in Asia continues to do important work despite a challenging press freedom environment. For @gijn.org, I spoke to journalists in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Bangladesh about their experiences, challenges, and the value of cross-border collaboration. gijn.org/stories/asia...

In a dispatch from Tashkent, The Beet explores the debates about language, trust, and technology shaping Wikipedia’s development in Central Asia (and beyond) in the age of AI. meduza.io/en/feature/2... @meduza.io

New pub: Central Asian migrants at the US-Mexico border: An exploration of causes Great piece analyzing spike in Central Asian migrants in 2021-2022. journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Lithuania's migration authorities are looking to close their visa center in Dushanbe due to the high number of visa overstays by Tajik citizens www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-e...

An ex-employee of Prigozhin’s “troll factory,” a graduate student who was near the fighting and a soldier from Rostov-on-Don shared their memories of living through the mutiny with MT.

My piece for @carnegieendowment.org on the impact of US and Israeli strikes on Iran’s nuclear program, including the damage, long-term pathways to reconstitution, internal debates in Iran, and the future of the IAEA carnegieendowment.org/emissary/202...

This is devastating. How much my colleagues and so many others have been fighting to prevent this. #KyrgyzParliament passed the media law in two readings at once, making changes at the very last minute. Last hope has failed www.reuters.com/business/med...

I can’t help but assume this includes programs for studying Central Asian languages

New legislation in Russia will require public schools to share the personal data of all immigrant children with the police This is combined with other legislation that limits access of immigrant children to public education www.currenttime.tv/a/33448907.h...

#Kyrgyzstan: Although 15 years have passed since the deadly ethnic clashes in the south of Kyrgyzstan, wounds still have not healed and new ones added with ongoing demolitions in Osh. I write about it in my oped here: thediplomat.com/2025/06/15-y...

Temirlan Yensebek, who used to run a satirical news channel called Qaznews24 (think of it as Kazakhstan's The Onion), has been designated an extremist in Kazakhstan. He's banned from using banking, owning real estate, or being officially employed orda.kz/jekstremist-...

Kyrgyz authorities are conducting anti-migrant raids across Bishkek today, targeting South Asian workers from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, many of whom work in the textile industry The criminalization of migration is truly global

The Telegram messaging app's infrastructure is controlled by a man whose companies have collaborated with Russian intelligence services, according to a new investigation by the exiled outlet IStories.

The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project reports today that Telegram's technical backbone is managed by a Russian network engineer with significant business ties to the FSB, Russia's counterpart to the FBI.

You can’t stay indifferent when your love is this deep. This isn’t just a story about #mountains — it’s about what lives within them: the forests, waters, glaciers, and the people who protect them. #Kyrgyzstan’s #Ala-Archa National Park Under Siege thediplomat.com/2025/06/dest...

Mashallah! Uzbekistan qualify for the 2026 World Cup! The first Central Asian nation to do so! ⚽ www.goal.com/en-us/lists/...

#Turkmenistan is on the list of countries whose citizens now face restrictions from entering the US, thought not an outright ban www.nbcnews.com/politics/tru...

DOGE cancels the Peace Corps program in Kyrgyzstan, the only country in Central Asia to host Peace Corps volunteers. I can only concur with @colleenwood.rocks's words quoted in this article. Peace Corps had a huge impact in Kyrgyzstan and is generally well liked thediplomat.com/2025/05/kyrg...

Ongoing detentions of former and current media workers in Kyrgyzstan Journalism is being demolished in real time www.reuters.com/business/med...

It was an honor to be the guest of the final episode of THE podcast on Central Asia, the Majlis Podcast, hosted by the one&only @pannierb.bsky.social. Together w/ Bakyt Beshimov & @nargiskassenova.bsky.social, we've discussed Central Asia's position in global politics: www.rferl.org/a/majlis-rus...

Tajikistan allegedly has the largest number of its nationals (931) serving in the Russian forces in Ukraine from among Central Asian countries. At least 196 of them have been killed in Ukraine. t.me/hochu_zhyt/3...

As the Taliban tries to attract foreign investment, it's pitching Afghanistan as a regional transit hub. In this analysis for @boursebazaar.bsky.social, Nargiza Umarova looks at the range of road and rail projects being pursued by Afghanistan's neighbors. www.bourseandbazaar.org/articles/202...

Russian authorities are considering forced cuts to federal spending as falling oil prices deplete the reserves needed to fund the war in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported, citing an anonymous source familiar with the preliminary discussions.

Worth a read: Reuters obtained the counterproposal from European and Ukrainian officials in response to the Trump admin’s push to end Russia’s war. The document differs on territory, sanctions, security guarantees & the size of Ukraine’s army. www.reuters.com/world/docume...

Uzbekistan to introduce “golden visas” for foreigners from June 1. The cost of the document will be $200,000 and $100,000 for family members of its holder.The document will be valid for 5 years.

Around 60 #Kyrgyz citizens were reportedly beaten by police in #Moscow, with more than 20 detained. Is Bishkek pushing back on Russians raids targeting Kyrgyz Nationals? Follow the link for more www.reuters.com/world/kyrgyz...

Kyrgyzstan arrests four people in the city of Osh for allegedly recruiting mercenaries to fight for Russia in Ukraine. Among those arrested is a representative of the Russian House in Osh and a member of the mayor’s communications team www.currenttime.tv/a/kyrgyzstan...

This is probably the longest translation I’ve ever done for @meduza.io. And it tackles a question I’ve long wanted to know the answer to: Who funds the Russian opposition — and what’s in it for them? If you’re looking for a weekend read, this is it! meduza.io/en/feature/2...

A gorgeous piece on the ancient tradition of eagle hunting in Kyrgyzstan from @atavist.com magazine.atavist.com/the-eagle-hu...

Andrej Triller, a descendant of Volga Germans deported to Kazakhstan by the Soviets, has been documenting the new tragedy hitting his community.

Fascinating look by @Peter__Leonard on his Havli Substack at how Central Asian governments try to combine “secular authoritarianism with “conservative moral revivalism” havli.substack.com/p/riding-two...

With the date of the next presidential election announced, the course of #Kyrgyz politics for years to come seems to be set. More context, subtext and details about, in my latest for @reuters.com

Journalist Lukpan Akhmedyarov - known for his hard-hitting reporting - detained in case involving dissemination of false information, a favoured charge to lock up journalist in #Kazakhstan which carries a lengthy prison sentence orda.kz/zhurnalista-... orda.kz/zhurnalista-...

✍️ 🚎 🚇 For Novastan, I wrote this review of urban public transport developments in Central Asia: novastan.org/en/context/n...

The head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund has emerged as a key figure in talks with the U.S. So who is he — and why is he suddenly everywhere?

Teahouse Rohat - one of the most iconic buildings and last vestiges of Soviet architecture in Dushanbe, Tajikistan - is now gone. My quick dispatch for @meduza.io on the teardown of the place that meant so much to me personally: meduza.io/en/feature/2...