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Author: Mathieu Lemoine

Mathieu Lemoine

Mathieu Lemoine est président de Novastan France. Spécialiste des questions de gouvernance, de société civile et de droits humains, il travaille depuis plus de dix ans sur l’Europe orientale, le Caucase et l’Asie centrale, notamment avec l’OSCE, les Nations unies, l’Union européenne et des programmes soutenus par l’USAID. Il a vécu et travaillé en Ouzbékistan, au Turkménistan, en Bosnie-Herzégovine, en Macédoine du Nord et en Russie. Passionné par l’Asie centrale, il souhaite contribuer au développement de Novastan comme média indépendant de référence sur la région, en renforçant ses partenariats, son audience et son ancrage européen.

Written articles:

Kounrad Copper Mine, Kazakhstan. Vlad Shtelts (Stelz), CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

What lies beneath Central Asia? Rare earths, critical minerals and the new race for resources

Central Asia is often described as the next frontier in the global race for rare earths. The reality is both more promising and more complicated. Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and their… [...]

The Mir-i-Arab Madrasa illuminated at night in Bukhara's Po-i-Kalyan complex. Credits: Mathieu Lemoine.

Bukhara Before the Border: Aini and the Politics of Tajik-Uzbek Memory

Some books are interesting because they tell a story. The Sands of Oxus: Boyhood Reminiscences of Sadriddin Aini is interesting because it captures an entire world at the moment… [...]

Uzbekistan at the World Cup: The White Wolves Enter the Global Stage

For its first-ever appearance at the FIFA World Cup, Uzbekistan arrives in North America with more than a football story. Around Eldor Shomurodov, Abdukodir… [...]

Anar Kakimova with her daughters. Photo: Anar Kakimova.

Between Extended Family and Personal Boundaries: How Parenting is Changing in Kazakhstan

Every year on June 1st, Kazakhstan celebrates International Children’s Day. In many cities, it is marked with concerts, theater performances, and free activities for children. For families, it is… [...]

Rinat Bekchintayev. Credits: Rinat Bekchintayev.

Rinat Bekchintaev: “Almaty has an authentic cinematic image that cannot be repeated anywhere else”

From Almaty to Moscow and Paris, filmmaker and editor Rinat Bekchintaev has built a creative identity shaped by movement, memory and displacement. In this interview with Novastan, he discusses… [...]

Dilmurad Yusupov. Credits: Tunde Alabi-Hundeyin.

“Disability is a Mirror for the Development of Societies” – A Conversation with Dilmurad Yusupov

Dilmurad Yusupov is an Uzbekistani researcher, civil society activist and international development consultant advocating for the rights and inclusion of persons with disabilities. He co-founded NGO… [...]

Kyrgyz film director Tolomush Zhanybekov. Credits: Tolomush Zhanybekov.

Through roads, markets and silence: Tolomush Zhanybekov films Kyrgyzstan’s unseen lives

Kyrgyz director Tolomush Zhanybekov turns his camera toward the people and places often left outside the frame: cemetery guards, pensioners selling their belongings, children facing humiliation, brothers bound by… [...]

Aziz Shokhakimov is Uzbekistan’s first conductor in Strasbourg and has led the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra since 2021. Credits: David Amiot, via the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra website.

From Uzbekistan to Strasbourg: Aziz Shokhakimov, a conductor between cultures and languages

Originally from Uzbekistan, conductor Aziz Shokhakimov has been leading the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra since 2021. At 38, this first Uzbekistani conductor in Strasbourg, passionate about French music, has followed… [...]

Members of the organisation Istiqbolli Avlod in Uzbekistan, Photo: Istiqbolli Avlod.

In Paris, an Uzbekistani NGO’s fight against human trafficking recognised with the French Republic Human Rights Prize

In 2025, the Uzbekistani NGO Istiqbolli Avlod received the Human Rights Prize of the French Republic. For its director, Nodira Karimova, this distinction is both an honour and a… [...]

On 10 February, Kamchybek Tashiev, head of the GKNB for more than five years, was dismissed by presidential decree. Credit: Kabar.

In Kyrgyzstan, after the dismissal of the GKNB chief, the political-security apparatus is reshuffled

On 10 February, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov dismissed Kamchybek Tashiev, head of the State Committee for National Security, or GKNB, and a central figure in power… [...]

On 26 February 2026, EU sanctions envoy David O’Sullivan visited Bishkek to discuss compliance with sanctions against Russia with his Kyrgyz counterparts. Credit: gov.kg.

Kyrgyzstan in the EU’s sights for the twentieth sanctions package against Russia

The visit to Bishkek on 26 February by EU sanctions envoy David O’Sullivan reflects the European Union’s tougher stance on the circumvention of sanctions targeting Russia in the region. [...]

Excerpts from the “I am a Tajik woman, and…” trend on social media.

Tajik women reveal themselves through the “I am Tajik and…” trend

Faced with archaic social expectations, Tajik women are expressing their exhaustion through a new coded language on social media. Built around the phrase “I am Tajik”, many personal testimonies… [...]

Soldiers of the 20th Mountain Cavalry Division arriving at the front. Photo: Gafur Chermatov / Asia-Plus.

Tajikistan’s contribution to the war effort during the Second World War

Local historian Gafur Chermatov details how the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic contributed to the war effort during the Second World War, known in the USSR as the Great Patriotic… [...]

Writer Hafiz Saifullaev. Photo: Private archives / Asia-Plus.

“Hafiz Saifullaev’s prose marks a fruitful turning point in Russian-language Tajik literature”

The short story collection Hold Me in Your Arms, by Hafiz Saifullaev, has been nominated for the Sadriddin Ayni Literary Prize. The book Hold Me in Your Arms… [...]

The Panj River, which forms the border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan. Photo: Novastan.

Lack of resources in Afghanistan undermines security on the border with Tajikistan

A recent report by a UN group reveals that the Taliban have sharply reduced the number of their security forces, disproportionately so in the region bordering Tajikistan. These budget… [...]

View of the city of Alatau, located near Almaty in southern Kazakhstan.

In Kazakhstan, the futuristic city of “Alatau” reaches a new milestone with special status

Presented as a future major technological and economic hub, the city of Alatau in Kazakhstan is entering a new phase of institutional structuring after obtaining special status, amid persistent… [...]

Kazakhstan is facing numerous environmental problems (illustration).

Overview of environmental issues in Kazakhstan

Like many countries, Kazakhstan is facing major environmental problems. Kazakh media outlet The Village has listed the environmental issues most frequently discussed in the country. Kazakhstan continues to… [...]

A freight locomotive at the Alashankou border station in China, before reaching the Kazakh border, 2017.

Kazakhstan continues to assert itself as the “key link” in the Middle Corridor

Kazakhstan strengthens its role as a key link in the Middle Corridor… [...]

Kamila Akhunova in the vineyard of the family estate, located a few kilometres from Tashkent, Uzbekistan. © Louise Simondet

In Uzbekistan, one family wants to support the revival of wine production

Once known for its grapes, Uzbekistan saw many vineyards destroyed after the fall of the USSR. The Akhunov family is now helping revive the country’s wine culture. [...]

How Central Asia is trying to protect the snow leopard

From Kyrgyz volunteer rangers to strict penalties in Uzbekistan, Central Asia is stepping up efforts to protect the rare and emblematic snow leopard. [...]

In Uzbekistan, one family wants to support the revival of wine production

Once known for its grapes, Uzbekistan saw many vineyards destroyed after the fall of the USSR. The Akhunov family is now helping revive the country’s wine culture. [...]

How Central Asia is trying to protect the snow leopard

From Kyrgyz volunteer rangers to strict penalties in Uzbekistan, Central Asia is stepping up efforts to protect the rare and emblematic snow leopard. [...]

Mathieu Lemoine

Written articles:

What lies beneath Central Asia? Rare earths, critical minerals and the new race for resources

Bukhara Before the Border: Aini and the Politics of Tajik-Uzbek Memory

Uzbekistan at the World Cup: The White Wolves Enter the Global Stage

Between Extended Family and Personal Boundaries: How Parenting is Changing in Kazakhstan

Rinat Bekchintaev: “Almaty has an authentic cinematic image that cannot be repeated anywhere else”

“Disability is a Mirror for the Development of Societies” – A Conversation with Dilmurad Yusupov

Through roads, markets and silence: Tolomush Zhanybekov films Kyrgyzstan’s unseen lives

From Uzbekistan to Strasbourg: Aziz Shokhakimov, a conductor between cultures and languages

In Paris, an Uzbekistani NGO’s fight against human trafficking recognised with the French Republic Human Rights Prize

In Kyrgyzstan, after the dismissal of the GKNB chief, the political-security apparatus is reshuffled

Kyrgyzstan in the EU’s sights for the twentieth sanctions package against Russia

Tajik women reveal themselves through the “I am Tajik and…” trend

Tajikistan’s contribution to the war effort during the Second World War

“Hafiz Saifullaev’s prose marks a fruitful turning point in Russian-language Tajik literature”

Lack of resources in Afghanistan undermines security on the border with Tajikistan

In Kazakhstan, the futuristic city of “Alatau” reaches a new milestone with special status

Overview of environmental issues in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan continues to assert itself as the “key link” in the Middle Corridor

In Uzbekistan, one family wants to support the revival of wine production

How Central Asia is trying to protect the snow leopard

Translated articles:

In Uzbekistan, one family wants to support the revival of wine production

How Central Asia is trying to protect the snow leopard

Edited articles:

The Hidden Weight of Divorce in Kyrgyzstan: Why Its Social Consequences Remain Gendered

“I only needed a passport” : In Ukraine, Central Asian prisoners of wars caught between loyalty and regret

In Tajikistan, daughters-in-law face a hidden system of control