By empty (6/30/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

Lyubov Ten, head of the macroeconomic policy department in Kyrgyzstan\'s Economy and Finance Ministry, said in an interview on June 29 that remittances from migrant workers totaled an estimated $750 million in 2005. Ten said that the International Organization for Migration puts the number of Kyrgyz migrant workers in Russia at 300,000-500,000 and in Kazakhstan at 50,000. Ten noted that the Bishkek Consensus Institute for Economic Policy (IEP) estimates the total number of Kyrgyz migrant workers at 400,000, including 50,000 outside the CIS.

By empty (6/27/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on June 26 for the \"repatriation\" of ethnic Russian \"compatriots\" living abroad, the daily \"Gazeta\" reported on June 27. Presidential aide Viktor Ivanov has been named to chair an interdepartmental commission to oversee the program, which could potentially affect up to 4 million people, primarily from CIS countries, the paper noted. Those coming to Russia will have to choose one of 12 regions divided into three categories.

By empty (6/26/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

Kazakhstan\'s Asar party leader and parliamentary deputy Dariga Nazarbayeva has proposed pro- presidential political forces\' merger into a new democratically orientated party. \"Our idea is to form a new party that would bring together the existing pro-presidential parties. There are some six-eight political parties in Kazakhstan which identify themselves as pro-presidential.