After protests in Nur-Sultan, Uzbek security services tighten grip

Joseph Quinn Martin, former Tashkent PR who became a champion of Washington business relations 

The man who once regularly delivered strategic communications operations to the Uzbek government is venturing into new territory, taking an active role in the privatisation of state assets as well as in American prospecting in Uzbekistan.

• FRANCE - COFREX picks representative for its Expo 2025 Osaka presence.

• FRANCE - Stéphane Bouillon discloses Viginum's annual report.

• UZBEKISTAN - Internal Security Service adds another layer to border control.

• WASHINGTON - DNI to sniff out Assad-linked Captagon.

Turkish armoured vehicle producers target Central Asian market 

As Turkish defence industrialists continue to pursue their commercial ambitions in Central Asian states, the armoured vehicle manufacturer Otokar is expanding its efforts in both Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

With new monopoly, National Guard eats further into SGB's powers 

A veritable incubator of trusted men for Uzbek President Mirziyoyev, the National Guard continues to gain power over the historic intelligence service inherited from the KGB, the SGB. Its latest prerogative is to become the sole provider of security services to the private sector.

Fall of Nazarbayev's sons-in-law prompts restructuring of Kazakhstan's oil sector 

The protests in Kazakhstan have had an impact on the energy sector, which has seen heads roll among those close to ex-president Nursultan Nazarbayev. Russia's SVR is keeping a close watch on proceedings.

Avisa Partners watches over Kazakhstan's interests in France 

Parisian consultancy Avisa Partners followed the Kazakh protests with concern until Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced on 10 January that order had been restored. The news was a relief to the firm that works for the new Kazakh consulate in Strasbourg.

• PARIS - the DGSE adopts a TREX

• NUR-SULTAN - the new KNB master's rise signals victory for the Tokayev camp

• PARIS - DGSE more careful on the internet than DGSI

Kazakh oligarchs fly off on holiday to escape the protests 

The unrest in Kazakhstan has led former President Nursultan Nazarbayev's inner circle and the country's oligarchs to fly out of the country in the hope that calm will soon be restored.

Ex-president Nazarbayev's grandson Aliyev Junior forges stature as future magnate 

Modelling himself on both ex-Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev and his father, the former spymaster turned opponent Rakhat Aliyev, rising business mogul Nurali Aliyev has spun an impressive network over the course of his political and financial career, ranging from Nursultan to London, and from Elon Musk to the Al-Nahyans.

How Tashkent spymaster was sacked 

Rustam Ionyatov, the feared head of the SNB, Uzbekistan's answer to the KGB, has paid for the vast purge that [...]