Interviews / Kyrgyzstan
Akylai, voice assistant speaking Kyrgyz, is to be introduced in Kyrgyzstan. A team of Kyrgyzstanis from across the world is working over this project and they promise to provide a pilot working model in a year. Co-founders of The Cramer Project Timur Turatali and Ulan Abdurazakov said to CABAR.asia how it will work and why the voice assistant should be taught the Kyrgyz language. (more…)
Amid strengthened discourses about the processes of political decolonisation, the term “decolonial feminism” can be heard more often. However, feminism per se in Central Asia is still the subject of bitter debates: on the one hand, it is considered as the liberation of women from patriarchate, on the other hand, it is criticised over intervention into the national culture and traditional values. (more…)
CABAR.asia talked with the esteemed UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, Ms Mary Lawlor, to explore potential avenues for safeguarding and upholding human rights in Central Asia. The rapporteur emphasized her people-centred approach, focusing on the most vulnerable defenders. The rapporteur encouraged anyone with reliable information about human rights defenders’ rights violations to contact her office. We discussed the importance of UN mechanisms in protecting human rights and holding governments accountable, despite the challenges of “democratic backsliding” in some countries of the Central Asian region.
Have you ever thought what would towns of Central Asia look like if the Soviet Union did not affect the culture of peoples living here? Is it possible that towns would be more comfortable and scenic than they are today? (more…)
How do US-Chinese contradictions affect the geopolitical picture of Central Asia? Are there any concerns in the US about the growing role of China in the regional security of Central Asian countries? How do the US experts assess China’s soft power? These and other questions were discussed with Johns Hopkins University Sinologist and Professor Andrew Murtha, exclusively for CABAR.asia. (more…)
In Kyrgyzstan, decolonisation has gone beyond the academic and scientific sphere to the public: the issue is being discussed both on online and offline platforms, influencers set the new tone in the language issue, while creative people show in intuitive language the narratives of full sovereignty.
How has the war in Ukraine transformed the security landscape in the post-Soviet space, particularly in Central Asia? What new developments are we witnessing in the energy security domain, and how will they change the region? These questions to Ambassador Dr Thomas Greminger, Director of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) He is sharing his views on the changing security situation in Central Asia and beyond exclusively for CABAR.asia. (more…)
What problems can machine learning and AI solve in Central Asia? Which countries or stakeholders can contribute to the advancement of machine learning and AI? What are the challenges and risks facing societies with the gradual introduction of AI and machine learning into our lives in political processes? The editors of CABAR.asia discussed these and other issues with Professor of the Higher School of Economics (Russia) Evgeny Sedashov. (more…)
“The Taliban model of governance is not suitable and sustainable for a multicultural and multinational country like Afghanistan. The more the Taliban suppress the people, the more the resistance will be empowered”, says Dr. Omar Sadr, a research fellow at the University of Pittsburgh.
What are the major risks posed by climate change in Central Asia? Will heatwaves in summer be the new normal? How Central Asia can address the issue as a region? What can be done at the level of individual countries to adapt to climate change? The editorial of CABAR.asia discussed these and other questions with Roman Vakulchuk who holds a PhD in Economics and works as Senior Researcher at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) focusing on climate change and renewable energy. (more…)