The Shanghai Cooperation Organization—the Russia-China led group that includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan—now may see itself growing into an organization to rival NATO, reports the Christian Science Monitor. This was the group that, in June, caused a ripple when it demanded a timetable for withdrawal of US military forces from several bases in Central Asia. At its behest, Uzbekistan kicked American troops out of K-2. (DR, 08/30/05) Kyrgyzstan ignored the urging, though, opting instead for more American money. (DR, 10/13/05) With that kind of “go your own way” approach, the group sounds almost like NATO now.
The successful second flight of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket on Nov. 13 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Fla., also included a first for the company—the launcher’s booster stuck its landing on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean.
