The Rundown -- December 23

# In letter to "Washington Post," Azerbaijan diplomat compares outrage over Khadija Ismayilova detention to current protests in the United States

Russia

# Peace talks to be held in Minsk on December 24 and 26

# Ukraine threatens to cut off power to rebel-held regions if usage not curbed

# Russia's top allies forge ties with Ukraine

# Why Ukraine's IDPs have given up hope of returning home

# Belarus enjoys bonanza amid Russia-West tensions

# Who pays the price for informal counterinsurgency

# Yazidi girls killing themselves to escape rape and imprisonment

# "Brave New Turkey" - Andrew Finkel, "New York Times"

# Erdogan says birth control is "treason"

# "The Economic and Social Benefits of a Thaw With Iran" - Ramin Farjad, McClatchy

# Iran talks up global oil conspiracies

# Can the West "get Afghanistan right?"

# Expat era fades away from life in Kabul

# Pakistan makes arrests in Peshawar attacks; Courts halt executions of seven militants

# Pakistan militants lose drug monopoly

# Kazakhstan says it's prepared for oil as low as $40 a barrel

Caucasus
# How will Baku handle the oil price slide

# Malta's "shady deal" with Azerbaijan

# In 2014, an epidemic of false video footage

# How we date