By empty (4/4/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he believes each of his meetings with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev results in \"the development of new projects and agreements and new levels of dialogue.\" Speaking at a press conference in Moscow on Tuesday, Putin pointed to significant growth in trade turnover between Russia and Kazakhstan, saying that the two countries are \"committed to strengthening multilateral ties.\" Nazarbayev said all former Soviet republics have realized in the fifteen years of independence that \"only through integration at the modern level is it possible not only to develop bilateral relations but also to facilitate each other\'s economic development.

By empty (4/3/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

A Turkish engineer has been shot dead by suspected Taleban militants while working on a road construction project in western Afghanistan, officials said. The engineer was pulled from his car and shot when travelling along the border of Farah and Nimroz provinces. His body was set alight by the militants, an official said.

By empty (4/2/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

Talks will are to be held with Kuwaiti ministries and organizations regarding plans to open a Kuwaiti Islamic cultural center in Russia\'s predominantly Muslim republic of Tatarstan, Tatar President Mintimer Shaimiyev said at a Sunday meeting with Kuwaiti Justice Minister Abdallah al-Matuq. Shaimiyev attaches great importance to developing spiritual ties between Kuwait and Russia, particularly Tatarstan, which is witnessing a vigorous religious revival, the Tatar president\'s press service told Interfax. Today Tatarstan has 1,100 mosques, compared with 23 in the late 1990s, Shaimiyev said.