Student, Shoukria positions a stone for cutting at the Turquoise Mountain Gem cutting class on May 18, 2011, in Kabul, Afghanistan. The mineral resources of Afghanistan are relatively unexplored even with Afghanistan's mineral wealth of coal, copper, gold and iron ore, with precious and semiprecious stones, including high-quality emerald, lapis lazuli, red garnet and ruby. Given the country's remote and rugged terrain, on-going instability plus an inadequate infrastructure and transportation means that mining is still difficult. While many are trying to bring positive changes, Afghanistan's mining industry uses unregulated, primitive methods and outdated equipment. (Photo by Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)

In modern Russia there are no free elections, therefore the political elite is almost constant.

Photo: Valentina Matvienko, Mayor of St. Petersburg, attends the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on June 17, 2011 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Global business leaders have gathered in Russia for the three-day conference. (Photo by Alexander Aleshkin/Epsilon/Getty Images)

Pro-democracy protesters dressed in traditional Thai costumes take part in an anti-government rally in Bangkok on October 14, 2020. (Photo by Jack Taylor/AFP Photo)

A Thai man smokes a cigarette as he sits in the flooded streets October 10, 2011 in Ayutthaya, Thailand. Around 200 factories closed in the central Thai province of Ayutthaya because of flooding, which is posing a threat to Bangkok as well. Over 260 people have died in flood-related incidents since late July according to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation. Some areas of the country are experiencing the worst flooding in 50 years, mainly in the centre, north and northeast. (Photo by Paula Bronstein /Getty Images)

A woman weeps after an announcement that Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej has died, at the Siriraj hospital in Bangkok, Thailand, October 13, 2016. Thailand's Royal Palace says King Bhumibol, the world's longest-reigning monarch, has died at age 88. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

Dinosaur costumed actors representing Thailand's establishment at a high school student led protest in Bangkok, Thailand on November 21, 2020. (Photo by Matthew Tostevin/Reuters)

Elderly people attend an aquatic exercise at a private pool in Bangkok, Thailand, April 28, 2016. Many Thai families look after elderly relatives at a cost that countrywide adds up to just under a third of household income. The number of families facing this issue will balloon as the population ages at a rate among the fastest in Southeast Asia. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

In this Thursday, August 11, 2016, photo, the injured are helped after a bomb blast in the southern resort city of Hua Hin, 240 kilometers (150 miles) south of Bangkok, Thailand. Police are investigating a series of bomb blasts in Hua Hin and other cities in Thailand. (Photo by Daily News via AP Photo)