Newly Assertive Central Asia Rejects 'Russia's Backyard' Label
Voice of America
Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev hosts Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Nov. 9, 2023, in Astana. Kazakhstan and the other Central Asia countries are working to dispel an image as "Russia's backyard." (Photo courtesy of the Kazakhstan President's Office) French President Emmanuel Macron visits Uzbekistan, talking with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Nov. 2, 2023. (Photo courtesy of the Uzbekistan President's Office) The heads of state gather at the Economic Cooperation Organization's member meeting in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on Nov. 9, 2023. (Photo courtesy of the Uzbekistan President's Office)
Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev bewildered Vladimir Putin and his entourage when, during a November 9 briefing in the Kazakh capital, he addressed the visiting Russian president in his native tongue.
Polling officials check and seal an electronic voting machine before they allow voters to cast their votes at a polling station during the last round of a six-week-long national election near Dharamshala, India, June 1, 2024. Nuns of the Missionaries of Charity, the order founded by Mother Teresa, stand in queue to cast their votes during the last round of a six-week-long national election, in Kolkata, India, June 1, 2024.
A North Korean military guard post, top, and South Korean post, bottom, are seen from Paju, South Korea, near the border with North Korea, May 31, 2024. A TV screen shows a report of North Korea's multiple rocket launchers during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, May 31, 2024.