A dam project helped raise water levels and increase fish stocks in the northern part of the depleted Aral Sea, offering hope of some revival in areas of one of the world's worst ecological disasters, the president of the World Bank said Thursday. The people of the Northern Aral Sea region in Kazakhstan may soon see their economy revitalized and the return of large-scale fishing and farming.

Kazakhstani head of state Nursultan Nazarbayev met with President of Japanese Diet's House of Councilors Satsuki Eda in Tokyo, expressing a desire to boost economic cooperation. Nazarbayev's visit to Japan is intended to find new ground for increasing agricultural trade and to seek Japanese support for the "rehabilitation" of the Semipalatinsk region and the Aral Sea.

There is much political unrest in Tajikistan, as inhabitants gathered on June 18th in front of the government building in Khorog in protest of government militarism and the rising cost of food. Inhabitants believe there is increasing interference from the government, and not enough subsidized provisions for the locals.

Kazakhstani Prime Minister Karim Massimov had a meeting today with the heads of the CIS Commerce and Industry Chambers. Representatives from other nations, including Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Latvia were all present. The purpose of the Chamber is to build business ties among nations and increase efforts to build common economic space.

The State committee of Uzbekistan have begun implementing a plan to prevent low quality toys being sold on domestic markets. Last year, there were at least 250 cases of toy smuggling registered in the country. Some misdemeanors include selling toys with no relevant documents, invoices, contracts, quality and hygiene certificates or labels in local language.

Afghanistan will ask international donors next month for $4 billion to revive its agricultural sector. However, it could be a hard sell with massive opium since foreign-funded efforts have largely failed to increase legal alternative to the narcotic though the price of grain has sharply raised.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has recently stepped up his ongoing campaign to promote Azerbaijan as the key to Europe’s energy security at a recent energy summit in Kyiv. But this is a role in which Baku needs a supporting actor. Azerbaijani experts believe that the Aliyev administration now has agreements with Turkmenistan to play that part.

The Hydrocarbon-rich countries, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, are heading towards a close economic relationship with India. The Vice President Hamid Ansari stated that India has capacities, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan capabilities and energy is the “prime factor”.

Severe winter weather in Tajikistan has caused a tremendous shortage in energy and gas and an increase in the prices of food and gasoline. With temperatures below -20 degrees Celsius, Tajikistan is always dependent on its neighbors to provide electricity during long winter months, but they have not had enough this year. The weather could also lead to greater unemployment and dismal wages.

Because Afghanistan did not honor an agreement with the International Monetary Fund and because the country’s three-year development plan could be rejected, international aid for Afghanistan is now in doubt. This is because the government failed to reach a target amount raised in taxes and the latest drafts of the Afghan National Development Strategy are of very poor quality. It has had time to achieve both these tasks but has not done so.