JULY 25 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgia has complained to the London Olympic Games for placing the disputed regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in Russia, media reported. On the London 2012 website, the birthplaces of two of Russia’s wrestlers, born in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, were followed by “(Rus)” indicating they are in Russia.
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(News report from Issue No. 098, published on July 27 2012)
JULY 17 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – At a bilateral conference in Tehran, Turkmenistan and Iran pledged to boost trade ties, media reported. In particular, Turkmenistan will deliver more gas to Iran. The two neighbours have become increasingly close over the past couple of years.
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(News report from Issue No. 097, published on July 20 2012)
JULY 10 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyz finance minister Akylbek Japarov flew to Tehran to sign a memorandum of understanding with Iranian trade minister Mehdi Ghazanfari on boosting links between the two countries, media reported. Kyrgyzstan and Iran want to generate bilateral trade of $2b a year. Iran has been increasing its ties with Central Asia.
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(News report from Issue No. 096, published on July 13 2012)
JULY 7 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – French President Francois Hollande said he would support a second attempt to pass a bill which would make it illegal to deny an alleged genocide at the end of WWI of ethnic Armenians by Ottoman Turks. Pushing the bill through France’s parliament would be a major victory for Armenia. Turkey refutes genocide accusations.
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(News report from Issue No. 096, published on July 13 2012)
JUNE 27 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Uzbekistan re-introduced Soviet-style exit visas for its nationals travelling to Turkmenistan and Tajikistan from June 1, the US-funded RFE/RL reported. Uzbekistan has earned a growing reputation as an isolationist and has had strained relations with both Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
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(News report from Issue No. 095, published on July 6 2012)
JULY 4 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijani officials charged Hilal Mammadov, editor of an ethnic minority newspaper in the south, with spying for Iran. Police arrested him last month for possessing heroin. In Tehran, Iranian prosecutors charged two Azerbaijani nationals with spying. Relations between Azerbaijan and Iran have worsened considerably this year.
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(News report from Issue No. 095, published on July 6 2012)
JULY 3 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Indian foreign minister Somanahalli Krishna visited Dushanbe for two days of talks. Indian media reported that he was the first Indian foreign minister to visit Dushanbe for nine years. Mr Krishna met with his Tajik counterpart, Hamrokhon Zafiria, and discussed India’s growing interest in the region.
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(News report from Issue No. 095, published on July 6 2012)
JUNE 22 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Iran sent its ambassador to Azerbaijan back to Baku after a month-long protest absence triggered by the Eurovision song contest which Tehran described as un-Islamic. Azerbaijan-Iran relations have been strained over the past year, so the ambassador’s return is an important step towards normalising ties.
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(News report from Issue No. 094, published on June 29 2012)
JUNE 27 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Uzbekistan has suspended its membership of the CSTO, a Russia-lead military alliance that includes many of the former Soviet states, a CSTO spokesperson announced in Moscow. No reason was given for Uzbekistan’s decision. Uzbekistan has increasingly earned a reputation as a unilateralist.
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(News report from Issue No. 094, published on June 29 2012)
JUNE 19 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan traded diplomatic barbs after an Azerbaijani patrol boat stopped a Turkmen research ship exploring a disputed Caspian Sea oil field. The row highlights tension between the Caspian Sea littoral states over its disputed hydrocarbon resources.
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(News report from Issue No. 093, published on June 22 2012)