A suspected Islamist militant has killed seven people in the city of Taraz in southern Kazakhstan - one of the worst attacks the country has seen. The man shot dead four members of the security forces and two civilians before blowing himself up, killing another police officer, say officials. The attack is the latest of several this year. It is likely to raise concerns that the militant threat is growing in Kazakhstan. (BBC)

A World Trade Organization (WTO) panel has approved a package of proposed reforms for Russia, clearing the way for the country to join the group after 18 years of negotiations. The WTO said Thursday that Russia's bid will now go before a meeting of all 153 members in December, where it is expected to get final approval. The reforms include a cap on tariffs and a provision allowing foreign banks to establish subsidiaries in Russia. U.S. President Barack Obama congratulated Russia for making progress on the issue. (VOA)

Kazakhstan has lifted a moratorium on test launches of Russian intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) from the Baikonur space center, head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos Vladimir Popovkin said. The ban was imposed in 2009 in line with the Kazakh government’s plans to make Baikonur a purely commercial space launch facility. Baikonur, built in Kazakhstan in the 1950s, is the main launch facility for the current generation of Russian rockets and was leased by Russia from Kazakhstan under an agreement signed in 1994 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. (RIA Novosti)

Rejecting criticism by China that the Obama administration’s goals for this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit are too ambitious, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said the U.S. will “push the envelope” to promote trade in renewable energy technology. Kirk is seeking an agreement with 20 other APEC nations to lower tariffs on environmental goods and services, a move supported by companies such as General Electric Co. and Applied Materials Inc. The U.S. has pushed for free trade in those products as part of the stalled Doha Round of World Trade Organization talks. (Bloomberg)

Prime ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) members pledged to further promote economic cooperation in the SCO meeting in St. Pertersburg. Amid increasing uncertainties in global markets, the SCO member states should further strengthen economic cooperation in a bid to minimize negative effects of the global crisis on their countries' banking and financial sectors, the leaders said in a joint declaration. The SCO would continue encouraging investment and advancing mutually beneficial projects among member states in line with laws of these states. (Xinhua)

Ahead of a one-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at the level of Prime Ministers in St. Petersburg on Monday, an official spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry said that the Prime Ministers of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan will discuss SCO expansion, and more specifically, plans to extend full membership to India and Pakistan, grant observer status to Afghanistan and affiliate Turkey as a SCO dialogue partner. (The Hindu)

The Indian government and chambers of commerce and industry have welcomed Pakistan's decision to grant it the most favoured nation status, saying it would give a much-needed boost to bilateral trade besides improving political relations between the two South Asia neighbours. "We deeply appreciate this positive gesture that Pakistan has taken. When bilateral engagement improves, it brings prosperity and growth to both partners," said Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, who spoke to his Pakistani counterpart Makhdoom Amin Fahim soon after Pakistan announced the decision. (The Daily Star)

China agreed to promote greater flexibility of its currency at the G20 summit on Friday, earning praise from the biggest critic of its foreign exchange policy, the United States. Speaking after the meeting of the world's top economic powers in the French resort of Cannes, US President Barack Obama said the move by China would be critical in boosting global growth. (AFP)

China has pumped 16.88 billion cubic metres of natural gas from Central Asia since the startup of a massive transnational pipeline in late 2009, operator China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) said on Thursday. The pipeline, with an expected annual capacity of 30 bcm by 2012, spans nearly 2,000 kilometres in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan before entering China's northwestern Xinjiang region. CNPC, parent of PetroChina Co Ltd , plans to build more pipelines in Central Asian countries with local partners and intends to almost double the capacity of the gas pipe system by 2015. (Reuters)

A suspected suicide bomber attacked one of Kazakhstan’s main oil cities yesterday, raising the prospect of a sustained bombing campaign by Islamic militants on Central Asia’s most stable country. An Islamic militant group called Jund al-Khilafah later claimed the attack. Jund al-Khilafah, which means Soldiers of the Caliphate, has said it will target Kazakhstan in retaliation for new laws which restrict Muslims’ right to pray. (The Telegraph)

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton welcomes the peaceful presidential elections in Kyrgyzstan as a further step towards consolidating democracy there. However, Catherine Ashton pays heed to problems with the voters’ list and vote counting, which “underscores the need to improve the integrity of the electoral process”. EU foreign policy chief noted that “the presidential elections are also an important milestone towards the establishment of constitutional order and further democratic consolidation of the country”. She assured that EU intends to support reforming process in Kyrgyzstan. (24.kg)

Kazakh Ambassador to India Dulat Kuanyshev met with Farooq Abdullah, Minister of New and Renewable Energy of India in Delhi. The sides discussed the development of strategic partnership between the two states. The Kazakh diplomat told about the country's activities dedicated to the 20th anniversary of independence in 2011 as well as to the 20th anniversary of Kazakh-Indian diplomatic relations in 2012. F. Abdullah expressed interest in establishing cooperation in the field of new and renewable energy sources, including solar energy during the meeting. (Gazeta.kz)

In Dushanbe President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko and Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon held negotiations on the development of economy, increasing trade turnover, supplies of heavy-duty trucks to Tajikistan. Supplies of Belarusian tractors to Tajikistan in 2012 will amount to 20m USD. Emomali Rakhmon suggested setting up a joint venture for assembling Belarusian tractors in Tajikistan. The parties discussed their participation in the Shanghais Organization of Cooperation, the CIS and CSTO and signed an agreement on trade and economic cooperation. (Belteleradiocompany)

Some bilateral documents will be sighed during the first official visit of Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbaev to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam from October 30 to November 1. Within the visit Nazarbaev will hold meetings with President Truong Tan Sang, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trọng and Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Sinh Hung. A business forum with participation of representatives of both countries will be held within the visit as well. (Trend)

Kyrgyzstan’s outgoing president said Friday the ex-Soviet nation has no choice but to join a Russia-dominated economic bloc and eventually enter a more ambitious alliance envisioned by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Putin has proposed forming a “Eurasian Union” of former Soviet nations, saying the bloc could become a major global player competing for influence with the U.S., the European Union and Asia. He said the new union will grow from the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, which Kyrgyzstan is expected to join. President Roza Otunbayeva said before Sunday’s vote in which her successor will be selected that joining the Russian-led alliances will help tackle security threats caused by the future withdrawal of NATO forces from nearby Afghanistan. (AP)

China's largest energy corporation China Qinghua Group is interested in creating coal-chemical technology transfer production in Kazakhstan, Kazakh National Agency for Export and Investment KAZNEX INVEST reported. China and Kazakhstan agreed to establish export-oriented enterprises in Kazakhstan during the visit of the Kazakh delegation headed by Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Bahytzhan Jaxaliev to China Qinghua Group's affiliated enterprise. (Trend)

During the vist of Afghanistan's Vice-President to Tajikistan, president of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon and Afghanistan's Vice-President Mohammad Qasim Fahim discussed the current relationship and the prospects of further expansion of bilateral cooperation between the two countries. Energy cooperation between the two countries was in the focus of the talks. Both sides expressed interest in expansion of mutually beneficial economic cooperation and implementation of regional projects aimed at constructing new power transmission lines and rail link connecting two countries. (Trend)

Vice President of China Xi Jinping said Wednesday that China and Uzbekistan should further advance mutually beneficial cooperation in an all-around and in-depth way. Xi made the remark when meeting with Uzbek Vice Prime Minister Rustam Azimov, who is in Beijing to co-chair the first meeting of the China-Uzbekistan Inter-government Cooperation Committee. Chinese State Councilor Meng Jianzhu serves as the Chinese co-chairman of the committee. (Xinhua)

Visiting Tajikistan on October 22-23, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton promised US assistance for improving the country’s border management and anti-drug enforcement, in view of growing instability in neighboring Afghanistan. Such assistance, beyond its intrinsic value, could also remove the rationale behind Moscow’s twin proposals: to deploy Russian border troops on the Tajik-Afghan border and to prolong the stationing of the Russian army’s 201st Division in Tajikistan. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Foreign Minister Hamrokhon Zarifi, and other Tajik officials welcomed Clinton’s assurances that the US stood ready to provide equipment and training for border troops, customs service, and the anti-narcotics agency in Tajikistan. (Asia-Plus)

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has set up an "advisory group" to help the government of Kazakhstan implement economic reforms, The Daily Telegraph wrote on Sunday. Mr Blair's spokesman has admitted that the former prime minister had set up an 'advisory group' to implement economic reforms in Kazakhstan. The deal, according to one source familiar with the deal, is worth as much as £8 million a year although Mr Blair's spokesman denied the amount. (Trend)