MEDIA AND ELECTIONS IN CENTRAL ASIA
By Olivia Allison (9/22/2004 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: Sarsanbaiuly’s resignation was the final step in a long line of strong statements against corruption and media bias toward pro-presidential parties in the run-up to Kazakhstan’s parliamentary elections. In particular, he criticized stations owned by President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s daughter Dariga, including Khabar and KTK, presenting monitoring results that show these stations’ extreme bias in favor of the pro-governmental parties Otan and Asar, while Channel 31 was found to be least biased by a Western-sponsored monitoring project during the campaign. Kyrgyzstan’s capital, Bishkek, lost its popular independent TV station Pyramida, when station management sold shares to a government affiliate late this summer.THE IRAN-ARMENIA PIPELINE: FINALLY COMING TO LIFE
By Hooman Peimani (9/22/2004 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: Being surrounded from three sides by hostile or unreliable neighbors, the operational pipeline will meet Armenia’s gas requirements from a friendly neighboring supplier, while significantly increasing Iran\'s gas exports now mainly limited to its uncertain exports to Turkey. The pipeline, which could be extended to Georgia and Ukraine, could go even farther to reach Central and Western Europe via Ukraine. If fully implemented, this will not only increase Iran\'s gas exports substantially, but it will drastically boost the importance of Armenia and Georgia and, by default, the South Caucasus, as a main export route for fossil energy to supply the European economies.KARACHAGANAK GAS AND THE FUTURE OF KAZAKHSTAN\'S PIPELINE SYSTEM
By Robert M. Cutler (9/8/2004 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: The supergiant Karachaganak condensate and gas field, onshore in northwestern Kazakhstan was discovered in 1979. Production began in 1984. After Kazakhstan became independent, BG (formerly British Gas) and Agip acquired rights to negotiate its development.CADRE CHANGES IN AZERBAIJAN: HOW FAR AND HOW FAST?
By Fariz Ismailzade (9/8/2004 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: When appointed prime minister of Azerbaijan in August 2003, Ilham Aliyev pledged to work with his father’s team. In the short run, at least, he has kept his word. The unification of the ruling elite around Ilham Aliyev prevented the fragmentation of the ruling New Azerbaijan party (YAP) and made a relatively smooth transition from former President Heydar Aliyev’s era into his son’s possible.Visit also
Staff Publications
Silk Road Paper S. Frederick Starr, U.S. Policy in Central Asia through Central Asian Eyes, May 2023.
Analysis Svante E. Cornell, "Promise and Peril in the Caucasus," AFPC Insights, March 30, 2023.
Oped S. Frederick Starr, Putin's War In Ukraine and the Crimean War), 19fourtyfive, January 2, 2023
Oped S. Frederick Starr, Russia Needs Its Own Charles de Gaulle, Foreign Policy, July 21, 2022.
Silk Road Paper S. Frederick Starr, Rethinking Greater Central Asia: American and Western Stakes in the Region and How to Advance Them, June 2022
Oped Svante E. Cornell & Albert Barro, With referendum, Kazakh President pushes for reforms, Euractiv, June 3, 2022.
Oped Svante E. Cornell Russia's Southern Neighbors Take a Stand, The Hill, May 6, 2022.
Silk Road Paper Johan Engvall, Between Bandits and Bureaucrats: 30 Years of Parliamentary Development in Kyrgyzstan, January 2022.
Oped Svante E. Cornell, No, The War in Ukraine is not about NATO, The Hill, March 9, 2022.
Analysis Svante E. Cornell, Kazakhstan’s Crisis Calls for a Central Asia Policy Reboot, The National Interest, January 34, 2022.
Book S. Frederick Starr and Svante E. Cornell, Strong and Unique: Three Decades of U.S.-Kazakhstan Partnership, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, December 2021.
Silk Road Paper Svante E. Cornell, S. Frederick Starr & Albert Barro, Political and Economic Reforms in Kazakhstan Under President Tokayev, November 2021.