... supplies amounted for 62% of the arms market in the whole region. This percentage has considerably increased during the last decade, with Kazakhstan being the largest consumer of the area [
viii
]. However, this monopoly is not equally distributed among Central Asian states. Uzbekistan prefers buying weapons from China, while Turkey is the largest arms supplier for Turkmenistan [
ix
].
In case of a conflict, together with the actual military presence on the ground, Russia holds another two trump cards. In peacetime, Central ...
....
Underdevelopment of the infrastructure is the result of a variety of factors. For instance, Kazakhstan was the only country formed after the fall of the USSR that had a relatively well-developed railway network connecting all its regions. In other Central Asian states, transport between regions relied on transit through neighbouring countries. In Uzbekistan, the only railway connection from Tashkent to Termez was through Turkmenistan.
Andrey Kortunov, Marlene Laruelle:
Envisioning Opportunities for U.S.-Russia Cooperation in and with Central Asia
In the almost 30 years since the collapse of the ...
... currently cooperating with Al Qaeda and the Pakistani terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba. In the late 1990s, the IMU consisted of several hundred Uzbek and Tajik militants. In contrast, today it
includes
hundreds of thousands of militants from all the Central Asian countries, as well as China, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Chechnya.
The ultimate reasons for the rise in extremism in Uzbekistan lie in its political, socioeconomic and inter-ethnic problems, which are especially typical of the most populated areas of the Fergana Valley. The
Fergana and Karategin valleys
are still convenient platforms for covert terrorist activity.
...
The Working Group on the Future of U.S.-Russia Relations’ Report
Central Asia stands out as a comparatively “nontoxic” region where there are limited, but not insignificant, opportunities for U.S.-Russia collaboration both bilaterally and within multilateral frameworks: in the space industry, civil security, job-creation ...
... Credit Insurance Corporation, Sinosure. Sinosure is moving into Belt and Road economies such as Azerbaijian, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan with a clear mandate to underwrite state lending activities in the region. However lacking competition and without ... ... ensure that China’s renminbi (RMB) is the currency of choice. While greater overseas direct investment (ODI) from China in the Central Asian and Caucasus economies may be welcome, it is important to understand that with the lack of any competition, and ...
... a cessation of human rights issues by the new administration office.
Andrey Kazantsev:
Post-Soviet Turkmenistan: A Little-Known Present and an Uncertain Future
Obviously, in the near future we are unlikely to hear any significant criticism over the Central Asian governments on this issue. Moreover, there might be some positive signals towards Uzbekistan, including the growing interest from American business, due to the «warming» of the political climate in Uzbekistan with
Mirziyoyev holding the office
, the announced reforms, and the attempts to establish
contacts with neighbors
from the ...
... official Daniel Rosenblum signaled a shift in the direction of American policy in Central Asia, reflecting some critical economic, political and security developments in the area. The June 9th speech comes after an unprecedented five-country tour of Central Asia-- Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan-- by Secretary of State Kerry last November.
In the same address to the House Foreign Affairs Committee last year, Rosenblum detailed the usual multifold approach to Central Asia— the promotion of state sovereignty, security, economic ...
...
rise
in the period 2014-2016. Second, specific features characteristic of those political environments (rigidly centralized decision-making systems, etc.) mean that capitals have an excessive importance for their countries. In the post-Soviet era, no Central Asian country has seen regime change through peripheral conflicts. The partly-Islamist revolt in Andijon, Uzbekistan in May 2005 was crushed swiftly and ruthlessly, although the uprising was definitely the most powerful in the former USSR and the rebels enjoyed massive support among the local population. The December 2011 riot in Mangystaut Region, Kazakhstan’s ...
... battlefields such as Mamayev Kurgan in Russia. But on the other hand, geographical non-attachment helps avoid many thorny questions, such as pressing issue of collaboration under the occupation.
www.flickr.com/photos/azwegers
World War Two veteran, Bukhara, Uzbekistan,
May 4, 2008
Unlike Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and the Baltic states, Central Asia was not a theater of war.
Second, perceptions of the Great Patriotic War in Central Asia are prominently affected by the population’s youthfulness. The average median age there ranges from 21 in Tajikistan to 29 in Kazakhstan
[1]
...
... greater capabilities operate. In some areas, Iran has become the most important partner, due to its territorial proximity, infrastructure, and technological capabilities.
Russia and Iran in the region: allies or rivals?
tourweek.ru / Yulia Beliaeva
Uzbekistan is particularly concerned by
the construction of the Sangtuda 2 Hydroelectric
Power Plant in Tajikistan, in which Iran is
involved.
Russia and Iran are both active in Central Asia, and have shared and competing interests. The presence of common threats draws the two countries together and prompts them to act in unison or take parallel courses.
This can be seen in counter-narcotics initiatives. Despite tough measures ...
