Turkmenistan

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev's quick tour of some former Soviet states illustrates Moscow's move to consolidate its influence over countries strategically important to Russia. [more]

A defense deal between Turkmenistan and Russia will strengthen ties between the two countries and show that the Central Asian state is gaining military heft. (With Stratfor map) [more]

Turkmenistan is emerging from decades of isolation and idiosyncrasy, but it has some important decisions to make. [more]

Turkmenistan plans to increase its natural gas exports to Iran by nearly a third. [more]

The five Central Asian states are debating switching from the Cyrillic to the Latin alphabet in an attempt to end their relative isolation and loosen their ties to Russia. [more]

The previously isolated Turkmenistan is beginning to act on the international stage and has several levers it can use in managing international affairs.(With Stratfor map) [more]

Turkmenistan is learning to use its natural gas supply as leverage on the international scene -- a scene the country largely has avoided until now. [more]

Turkmen and EU officials agreed April 9 to have 10 billion cubic meters of natural gas available for export to Europe by 2009. [more]

Kazakhstan, one of the largest wheat exporters in the world, is considering reducing or even halting grain exports. This could have unpleasant consequences for the other four Central Asian states. (With Stratfor map) [more]

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimukhammedov will become the first Turkmen leader to go to a NATO summit when he attends the alliance's heads of state meeting on April 2-4. (With Stratfor map) [more]

China and Turkmenistan have agreed on a price for Turkmen natural gas to be imported by China via the planned Central Asia Gas Pipeline, China Securities Journal reported Jan. 21. [more]

The Turkish Energy Ministry said Jan. 9 that it had halted the new flow of Azeri natural gas to Greece in order to meet Turkey's domestic needs. The cut is the latest in a domino effect that could cause Europe to lose confidence in the countries involved. [more]

Iran said Jan. 2 that it has decreased its daily natural gas exports to Turkey by 15 million cubic meters, in part because of the cessation of natural gas shipments to Turkmenistan. [more]

The year 2008 will be when Turkmenistan's future — and heavy involvement in the international system — is decided and oriented. [more]

The Turkmen government managed to force upon Russian state energy giant Gazprom a sharp price increase Nov. 29. Ashgabat's success will almost automatically translate into a new natural gas crisis involving Ukraine and Europe in 2008. [more]

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimukhammedov recently announced that upgrades will be made on a natural gas pipeline used to export Turkmen natural gas to Russia. [more]

An upcoming conference between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan on Caspian Sea maritime boundaries could well change the balance of power in Eurasia. [more]

Russian President Vladimir Putin attended a meeting of Caspian Sea littoral leaders Oct. 16, at which he implicitly reasserted Russian influence in the area's former Soviet states. [more]

Hungary now backs a natural gas project aiming to wean Europe from dependency on Russian energy. [more]

China is making a bid for Central Asia's energy resources, a move that will ultimately expand into a bid for geopolitical control of the entire region. [more]