Roland Nash of Verno Capital
Fri, 13th Jan -- 2012 is shaping up to be a year of change in Russia. Both the economic and the political models that have underpinned the country for a decade have stopped working. Inside, we lay out our top-10 trends to watch for 2012.

Clare Nuttall in Almaty
Fri, 13th Jan -- The result of the January 15 parliamentary elections is not in doubt, but Kazakhstan goes to the polls in a less stable situation than it has been for many years, with the risk of popular protests if the election is perceived as farcical.

Plamen Monovski, CIO of Renaissance Asset Managers
Tue, 20th Dec -- We hope you enjoy this special edition of Renaissance Asset Manager's "Friday RAM" report, which peers, tongue-in-cheek, into some unexpected occurrences in 2012. It mixes the wacky with the serious, the probable with the impossible, leaving it to you, the Reader, to spot which one is which.

bne
Mon, 19th Dec -- What happens to Western Europe in the spring of 2012 is obviously key to the path that Russia will follow, but outside the scope of this report. All the banks have their own views, so we limit ourselves to reproducing an outline of four possible scenarios from PwC that covers the basics.

Clare Nuttall in Almaty
Mon, 19th Dec -- One person was killed in a new outbreak of violence in west Kazakhstan on December 17, a day after security forces killed at least 11 rioters in the oil town of Zhanaozen. Protests also took place December 18 in the regional centre Aktau, where several hundred people demonstrated peacefully outside the city's administrative offices.

Clare Nuttall in Almaty
Mon, 19th Dec -- Kazakhstan is set to maintain steady economic growth of around 6% in 2012. The country is well prepared to weather a global economic slowdown, although its performance will depend on the impact of global events on commodity prices.

Clare Nuttall in Almaty
Mon, 19th Dec -- The Azeri government hopes that continued economic prosperity will stave off political discontent, while Armenia is preparing to hold parliamentary elections in May 2012.

bne
Fri, 16th Dec -- If ever proof was needed that the pension systems in Central Europe require urgent reform, then the arrest of a gang of pensioners in Slovakia for attempting to smuggle nuclear materials may be it.

bne
Thu, 15th Dec -- With all this talk of revolution and vote rigging, bne thought it would be a good idea to compare Russia's voting record with the other members of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

bne
Wed, 14th Dec -- Kyrgyz MPs are close to agreement on a new coalition government after the resignation of Parliament Speaker Akhmatbek Keldibekov over his links to organised crime, which will help soothe tensions that have spread since the previous administration split on December 2.

bne
Tue, 13th Dec -- The white ribbons that the protestors were sporting is an appropriate colour, as this revolution won't have the colour of the street battles in Minsk or Wall Street; it will be fought online and in speeches couched in the terms of moderation and insistence. But the ball is in the Kremlin's court now.

bne
Thu, 8th Dec -- After years of pressure, the Kazakh government looks set to finally get its hands on a stake in Karachaganak - the last mega oil & gas project in the country still being developed solely by international oil majors.