Central Asia

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's environment ministry has given the go-ahead for the construction of what will become the country's tallest hydroelectric dam despite acknowledging it will have an impact on plants and rare fish. The dam, with a height of 314...

BISHKEK (Reuters) - An emotional Kyrgyzstan president on Tuesday said "mob rule" had wrecked the sale of a gold field, blaming local clans for tripling the asking price and scaring off investors. Jerooy, the second-largest Kyrgyz gold deposit, was...

* Russia, United States seek to relaunch peace effort * Assad's future role could be sticking point * Moscow keen to head off any Western intervention By Arshad Mohammed and Timothy Heritage ROME/MOSCOW, May 9 (Reuters) - If Russia has decided to make...

MOSCOW -- Rescue teams found remains of two crew members Saturday morning at the site of a U.S. military plane crash in Kyrgyzstan, an official said. “Fragments of two bodies have already been found as we are continuing the search,”...

BISHKEK (Reuters) - A U.S. military refueling plane on its way to Afghanistan exploded in mid air and crashed in Kyrgyzstan on Friday when its cargo of fuel ignited, the Central Asian country's Emergencies Ministry said. The aircraft took off from the U....

Since the Boston terror attacks, an all-too-familiar mantra has re-emerged: American Muslims need more policing and increased surveillance. This demand, encouraged by U.S. Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., and many others, stems from a lack of understanding of the...

That the name Tugan Sokhiev has yet to ring a bell with most American concertgoers is perfectly understandable: Until his podium debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on Thursday night at Symphony Center, he had yet to wield a baton in front of any...

Three new faces will join the Alumni Wall of Fame at Lake Forest High School, which contains photographs and plaques celebrating the accomplishments of former students and inspiring current ones. The three unveiled Wednesday were David Crane, Thomas...

People from central Europe and the former Soviet Union are crazy about dumplings. Over there, the dumpling is such a staple it can be either a main course or dessert.  Last week, I talked about food with foreign exchange students from Ukraine,...

WASHINGTON -- When John Kerry’s political foes complained in 2004 that he “looked French” and ordered Swiss cheese on his Philadelphia cheese steaks, the Democratic presidential nominee began keeping his affinities for Europe bien...

MANDAN, N.D. (AP) - Mananbai Sadykov cuffed his stiff blue jeans over intricately stitched cowboy boots and tread mindfully though minefields of cattle manure at the Helbling Hereford Ranch in central North Dakota. Sadykov, 48, is no citified dandy,...

For the premiere episode of its third annual Big Cat Week, National Geographic Wild has upped the stakes. Having already explored man-eating lions and most of their lethally gorgeous kindred, this Big Cat Week opens Sunday night in Kabul where big cat...