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Stephen M. Bland

As seen in: The Times of Central Asia, VICE, VICE UK, The Diplomat Magazine, Eurasianet, E-International Relations, Eurozine, International Policy Digest, Perceptive Travel, IndraStra Global
Covers:  Central Asia, the Caucasus, Post-Soviet Lands, Politics, Culture and Corruption.
Managing Editor & Head of Investigations @thetimesoca; author, journalist, expert specializing in Central Asia & Caucasus. @EurasiaNet @Diplomat_APAC @BBCWorld
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U.S. Strikes on Iranian Rail and Coastal Infrastructure Put Central Asia's Southern Routes Under ...

U.S. Strikes on Iranian Rail and Coastal Infrastructure Put Central Asia's Southern Routes Under ...

The Times of Central Asia — U.S. strikes on Iranian rail and coastal infrastructure have put Central Asia’s southern trade routes under pressure. Damage to the Aq Taqeh Khan railway bridge, on Iran’s rail link to Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, has raised concern, while strikes near Iranian ports add exposure for Kazakhstan’s planned Shahid Rajaee terminal. Kazakhstan says the terminal site was not hit, and no freight suspension has been confirmed. The developments show how efforts to diversify away from Russia and the Caspian can still run into wartime security problems.
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Kazakhstan's Persian Gulf Port Plan Faces New Iran Risk - The Times Of Central Asia

Kazakhstan's Persian Gulf Port Plan Faces New Iran Risk - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Kazakhstan’s plan to build a logistics terminal at Iran’s Shahid Rajaee Port would give Astana a valuable southern outlet to the Persian Gulf, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and East Africa. But renewed U.S.-Iran strikes have exposed the costs of using a route near the Strait of Hormuz, where war risk, sanctions, insurance premiums, and shipping disruptions can change fast. The deal shows why Kazakhstan is expanding several corridors at once, from Iran to the Middle Corridor, as Central Asia searches for safer access to global markets and less dependence on Russian routes.
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Central Asia's Fuel Squeeze Becomes a Winter Energy Security Problem - The Times Of Central Asia

Central Asia's Fuel Squeeze Becomes a Winter Energy Security Problem - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Central Asia’s fuel squeeze is moving from filling stations into winter planning. Governments are now tracking gasoline and diesel, gas pipelines, coal deliveries, power imports, jet fuel, and emergency repair crews. Seasonal fuel and power stress is familiar across the region, but the current pressure – tied to Russia, the main supplier for several regional fuel flows – has arrived early.
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Uzbekistan Census Reveals Bigger Population, Younger Pressure, and Planning Gaps - The Times Of C...

Uzbekistan Census Reveals Bigger Population, Younger Pressure, and Planning Gaps - The Times Of C...

The Times of Central Asia — Uzbekistan’s first full census since the Soviet era has found more than 810,000 people who were missing from the country’s running estimates, shifting the baseline for schools, clinics, housing, labor forecasts, regional budgets, and agriculture.
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Kyrgyzstan Looks Beyond Russia as Fuel Squeeze Hits Central Asia - The Times Of Central Asia

Kyrgyzstan Looks Beyond Russia as Fuel Squeeze Hits Central Asia - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Kyrgyzstan is seeking new fuel supplies from Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Belarus as refinery disruptions and export controls in Russia strain Central Asia’s fuel market. Officials say reserves are sufficient and prices will remain capped, but the squeeze is exposing the region’s reliance on Russian fuel and the limits of alternative routes.
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Uzbekistan's Logistics Push Aims to Turn Transit Growth into Revenue - The Times Of Central Asia

Uzbekistan's Logistics Push Aims to Turn Transit Growth into Revenue - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Tashkent is trying to turn a fast rise in transit cargo into a larger role in Eurasian trade. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed proposals on July 1 to expand logistics centers, modernize border infrastructure, digitalize warehouse and customs systems, and attract private investment into transport hubs.
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Uzbekistan and Georgia Sign Strategic Partnership Declaration - The Times Of Central Asia

Uzbekistan and Georgia Sign Strategic Partnership Declaration - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Uzbekistan and Georgia have signed a declaration establishing strategic partnership relations, adding a new dimension to a relationship led by trade and Eurasian transit routes.
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Chinese Workers Return to Tajik Highway Under Guard After Afghan Border Attacks - The Times Of Ce...

Chinese Workers Return to Tajik Highway Under Guard After Afghan Border Attacks - The Times Of Ce...

The Times of Central Asia — Chinese engineers and workers have returned to a highway site in eastern Tajikistan under armed protection. Their return restarts work on a road toward China that stopped after two attacks from Afghanistan killed five Chinese nationals in November.
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Uzbekistan Agrees Tariff Cuts for U.S. Goods as Moody's Raises Sovereign Rating - The Times Of Ce...

Uzbekistan Agrees Tariff Cuts for U.S. Goods as Moody's Raises Sovereign Rating - The Times Of Ce...

The Times of Central Asia — Uzbekistan and the United States announced a new package of trade commitments on June 25. Moody’s raised Uzbekistan’s sovereign rating by one notch the same day. The two decisions strengthen Tashkent’s case that economic reforms are producing practical gains.
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Tokayev's Brussels Visit Brings Aviation Pact, Visa Progress and $12 Billion Business Package - T...

Tokayev's Brussels Visit Brings Aviation Pact, Visa Progress and $12 Billion Business Package - T...

The Times of Central Asia — President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s Brussels visit produced a $12 billion package of commercial agreements, including a €7.145 billion Air Astana order, plus progress on easier short-stay visas, and an aviation pact with the EU. The two sides also backed Middle Corridor road and logistics projects, a critical minerals laboratory, and deeper energy cooperation. The visit moved EU-Kazakhstan ties from broad strategy toward signed deals, named financing, and practical projects, while reinforcing Europe’s largest trade and investment relationship in Central Asia.
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Tokayev Heads to Brussels as Kazakhstan and EU Seek Progress on Trade, Minerals and Transport - T...

Tokayev Heads to Brussels as Kazakhstan and EU Seek Progress on Trade, Minerals and Transport - T...

The Times of Central Asia — Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s Brussels visit focuses on whether Kazakhstan and the EU can turn a long-standing trade and investment relationship into more concrete projects. The EU is already Kazakhstan’s main trade and investment partner, but ties remain heavily concentrated in fuel and mining exports. The talks center on critical minerals, the Middle Corridor, energy, digital links, visa facilitation, and wider political issues including Ukraine, human rights, and sanctions.
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Azerbaijan Moves Into Uzbekistan's Gold and Critical Minerals Sector - The Times Of Central Asia

Azerbaijan Moves Into Uzbekistan's Gold and Critical Minerals Sector - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Azerbaijan has moved from preliminary mining talks to signed project agreements in Uzbekistan. On June 16, state-owned AzerGold signed an agreement to jointly develop a gold deposit in Uzbekistan. A separate document covered a critical minerals project with NEQSOL Holding. Azerbaijani Prime Minister Ali Asadov and Uzbek Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov attended the ceremony in Tashkent.
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Uzbekistan's $4.2 Billion Critical Minerals Plan Aims to Turn Raw Materials Into Industry - The T...

Uzbekistan's $4.2 Billion Critical Minerals Plan Aims to Turn Raw Materials Into Industry - The T...

The Times of Central Asia — Uzbekistan has unveiled a $4.2 billion critical minerals program aimed at moving beyond raw material exports and building a domestic processing industry. The 2026-2030 plan covers 120 projects, including high-purity selenium, tellurium, and rhenium production, new laboratory capacity in Chirchik, and deeper work in tungsten and molybdenum. The push comes as Tashkent courts U.S. finance and foreign buyers seeking more secure supply chains.
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U.S.-Iran Framework Could Reopen Central Asia's Southern Route - The Times Of Central Asia

U.S.-Iran Framework Could Reopen Central Asia's Southern Route - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — A preliminary U.S.-Iran framework could reopen Central Asia’s southern trade routes, but sanctions, shipping risk, and unresolved nuclear terms still remain obstacles. Kazakhstan has welcomed the announcement, while earlier regional statements backed de-escalation. For landlocked economies seeking alternatives to routes through Russia, Iran offers access to the Gulf, Türkiye, India, and the Indian Ocean. If implemented, the framework could lower risk premiums and revive stalled transport and energy projects, giving exporters another route to the sea.
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Kyrgyzstan and Georgia Seek Black Sea Link for CKU Railway - The Times Of Central Asia

Kyrgyzstan and Georgia Seek Black Sea Link for CKU Railway - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Kyrgyzstan and Georgia are linking their transport plans to the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, with Bishkek seeking future access to Georgian Black Sea ports through the Caspian and South Caucasus. During Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s June visit to Bishkek, the sides signed agreements covering customs, aviation and other areas. The route could give landlocked Kyrgyzstan a new role in east-west freight, while Georgia is seeking more Central Asian cargo for the Middle Corridor. Construction on the CKU line is under way, with a 2030 launch target.
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Kyrgyzstan Says 31 Suspected KTJ and Islamic State Members Detained in Southern Operation - The T...

Kyrgyzstan Says 31 Suspected KTJ and Islamic State Members Detained in Southern Operation - The T...

The Times of Central Asia — Kyrgyzstan’s State Committee for National Security, or GKNB, said it detained 31 suspected members of Katibat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad and Islamic State during an overnight counterterrorism operation in the southern Osh and Batken regions.
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EU Sanctions Seminar in Bishkek Puts Kyrgyzstan's Russia Trade Under Scrutiny - The Times Of Cent...

EU Sanctions Seminar in Bishkek Puts Kyrgyzstan's Russia Trade Under Scrutiny - The Times Of Cent...

The Times of Central Asia — The European Union held a full-day sanctions seminar in Bishkek on June 9, aimed at Kyrgyz companies, banks, logistics operators and virtual-asset businesses. The session comes less than seven weeks after Brussels used its anti-circumvention tool against Kyrgyzstan for the first time.
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Tokayev Congratulates Pashinyan as Armenia Vote Tests Moscow's Reach - The Times Of Central Asia

Tokayev Congratulates Pashinyan as Armenia Vote Tests Moscow's Reach - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev congratulated Nikol Pashinyan after Armenia’s ruling party won the June 7 election. The result keeps Yerevan on its westward course, despite Russian pressure and domestic anger over Nagorno-Karabakh. For Kazakhstan, closer Armenia ties could support new South Caucasus trade routes and reduce reliance on Russian corridors.
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From Culture to Critical Minerals: C5+1 Opens Busy U.S. Week in Central Asia - The Times Of Centr...

From Culture to Critical Minerals: C5+1 Opens Busy U.S. Week in Central Asia - The Times Of Centr...

The Times of Central Asia — The C5+1 format is moving into a busy week of practical diplomacy, with culture officials meeting in Tashkent days before a critical minerals dialogue in Astana. The agenda now ranges from heritage protection, museum links, and creative exchanges to mining, investment, copper, logistics, and supply chains. For Washington and Central Asia, the challenge is turning meetings into contracts and funded programs.
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Uzbekistan Begins Construction of First Nuclear Power Plant - The Times Of Central Asia

Uzbekistan Begins Construction of First Nuclear Power Plant - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Uzbekistan has started building its first nuclear power plant, turning a project discussed for nearly a decade into one of the largest energy commitments in
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Uzbekistan Begins Construction of First Nuclear Power Plant - The Times Of Central Asia

Uzbekistan Begins Construction of First Nuclear Power Plant - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Uzbekistan has begun construction of its first nuclear power plant, moving a long-planned energy project into formal development. The Jizzakh plant will combine two large VVER-1000 reactors with two smaller RITM-200N units, giving it more than 2.1 GW of capacity. The project could reduce reliance on gas, but financing, safety, and Russia’s long-term role remain key questions.
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The Times of Central Asia —
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Kazakhstan Turns to China and Hong Kong for Deals, Yuan Debt, and Market Access - The Times Of Ce...

Kazakhstan Turns to China and Hong Kong for Deals, Yuan Debt, and Market Access - The Times Of Ce...

The Times of Central Asia — Kazakhstan is deepening its financial and commercial ties with China and Hong Kong, signing dozens of new agreements days after its debut sovereign panda bond issue. The deals point to wider access to yuan funding, Hong Kong listings, and Asian capital, but also raise questions about Kazakhstan’s growing exposure to China-linked finance.
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Kyrgyzstan Wins First-Ever Seat on UN Security Council - The Times Of Central Asia

Kyrgyzstan Wins First-Ever Seat on UN Security Council - The Times Of Central Asia

The Times of Central Asia — Kyrgyzstan has won a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the first time, defeating the Philippines after four rounds of voting in the General Assembly. The two-year term begins on January 1, 2027, and returns Central Asian representation to the Council for the first time since Kazakhstan’s 2017–2018 term. For Bishkek, the seat is a diplomatic breakthrough and a chance to bring regional concerns, including Afghanistan, border security, terrorism, narcotics trafficking, and climate instability, into Council debates.
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