The Rundown -- September 25

# Brno firm making smart TV app for RFE/RL, Prague Post

# Corruption Currents: From Expat Complaints to Whistleblowing’s Cost, WSJ

# Security Pact Will Be Signed After Afghan President Is Inaugurated, Official Says, NYT

# Will Afghanistan’s new leader settle the country’s relations with the U.S.?, WP
# Rebuild Afghanistan's Giant Buddhas? Foot-Shaped Pillars Give Legs to Debate, WSJ
# Afghan Voters Choose a Better Future, Huffington Post
# Ghani will be tested on multiple fronts in newly unified Afghanistan, Chicago Tribune
# Dr Muhammad Shakeel Auj: Islamic scholar murdered in Pakistan due to his liberal views, Independent

# A Terror Cell That Avoided the Spotlight, NYT
# U.S. strikes in Syria against al-Qaeda’s Khorasan group kill one of its leaders, WP
# ISIS’ Harsh Brand of Islam Is Rooted in Austere Saudi Creed, NYT

# We must play our part in the fight against Isis, Independent

# Belarus demands from Russia to set off oil refineries’ losses, charter97.org

Caucasus
# Azerbaijan: BP Should Address Crackdown, HRW

# Kazakhstan balanced between Ukraine and post-NATO Afghanistan, Reuters

# Germany offers Kazakhstan partnership to form logistics base in its ports, Turkish Weekly

# Kazakhstan: Is Sanctions-Hit Kremlin Dragging Astana Down?, eurasianet.org

# Ablyazov Extradition Battle to Resume Thursday in France, WSJ

# Iranian President Praises Cooperation in New York, NYT

# A Year of Iranian 'Moderation', WSJ

# David Cameron says Iran can be 'part of solution' in Syria after historic talks, Telegraph

# Iran’s president blames Islamic State rise on U.S. invasion of Iraq, The State

# Interpreting Iran’s Mixed Messages, WSJ

Russia
# Russia May Get Cold Shoulder From Europe in Looming Gas Wars, Newsweek
# At the U.N. General Assembly, Obama Zaps Russia’s Sneak Invasion of Ukraine, Newsweek
# Putin's Cyberphobia, Foreign Policy
# World Bank Slashes Russian Growth Forecasts, WSJ
# Russia Plans to Partially Ban Skype — Again, Moscow Times

# Russian Court Delays Hearing to Contest Yevtushenkov House Arrest, WSJ

# Russia and the Precedent Problem, National Interest

Ukraine
# Ukraine Picks Motley Group to Exchange for Prisoners, NYT
# Ukraine's Lost Trade Opportunity, WSJ
# Is Ukraine another bottomless pit?, The Hill
# Lithuania: EU Compromise on Ukraine Pact Isn't Right Step, WSJ
# Ukraine PM asks West to not to ease sanctions on Russia, Telegraph
# Borderland: Ukraine’s Dilemma, New Yorker