Domestic Politics
In a surprise move, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, along with the entire Russian cabinet, resigned on Wednesday after President Vladimir Putin proposed constitutional changes that would limit the power of future presidents. Putin has named Tax Service chief Mikhail Mishustin as Medvedev’s successor. [Business Insider]
Bakhtiyor Khudoyorzoda, the Chairman of Tajikistan’s Central Commission for Elections and Referenda (CCER), in a meeting yesterday, announced that 39 polling stations will be set up outside the country so that Tajik nationals living in foreign countries can vote in the upcoming Majlisi Namoyandagon (lower chamber) elections on 1 March 2020. [Asia-plus]
International Relations
Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov visited New Delhi on a working visit this week, where he met with his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, to discuss ways in which India and Uzbekistan can advance their relationship and strengthen their ties, with special attention given to Afghanistan and the peace process. [Tashkent Times]
Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev yesterday hosted Russia’s Sergey Lavrov, the acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, to review topical aspects of Russian-Uzbek ties and discuss regional and international problems. [Tashkent Times]
Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko met with Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins on 16 January in Minsk to expand cooperation and rekindle their strong economic ties, which have been lost in recent years. [Belarusian Telegraph Agency]
Yesterday, Mongolian ambassador L Purevsuren and Mgr Paul Richard Gallagher, Vatican Secretary for Relations with States, signed an agreement to intensify their cultural relations. As a part of this agreement, Mongolian scholars will gain access to the Vatican Secret Archive, while the Vatican has offered to teach Latin to Mongolian scholars to learn more about their national history. [AsiaNews]
Science & Technology
Two new units worth over $2 million will be set up in Kazakhstan’s Turkistan region to operate the welding and assembly of robotic technologies. Experts claim that introducing robots to industrial processes will reduce prices by 10% and increase the volume of production. [Kazakh TV]
It is expected that the first contract to supply the new Indo-Russian supersonic cruise missile, BrahMos, to a third country, will be signed in April-May 2020. The PJ-10 BrahMos has been jointly developed by India’s Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and the Reutov-based Research and Production Association of Machine-Building. [Eurasian Times]
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