HIV/AIDS EPIDEMIC: TIME IS RUNNING OUT FOR CENTRAL ASIA
By Ali Buzurukov (4/10/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: In June 2001 Central Asian Conference on the Prevention of HIV/AIDS held in Almaty, Kazakhstan brought together government officials, UN specialized agencies and NGOs to discuss the explosive growth of HIV/AIDS prevalence in the region. It was the first time that Central Asian governments openly acknowledged the problem and signed a declaration that calls for the establishment of a consensus and the development of a regional strategy to combat HIV/AIDS. The declaration is considered a major breakthrough in recognizing the problem and hopefully marks the end of the "denial era".
AKSY: A TURNING POINT, OR A DOT ON A STRAIT LINE DOWN?
By Emil Juraev (4/24/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: On March 17 and 18, the first violent clashes between citizens and the police happened in Aksy region of the Kyrgyz Republic. People came out to protest the lawsuit against member of parliament Azimbek Beknazarov, a vocal critic of President Akaev. The police was ordered to prevent the protesters from entering the regional center where the verdict of the lawsuit was to be announced.
CIS REMAINS TOP PRIORITY IN RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY
By Ariel Cohen (4/24/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: In his state-of-the-Federation address on April 18, Vladimir Putin made one thing perfectly clear: the Commonwealth of Independent States will remain the top priority of the Russian foreign policy. Putin’s speech contained altogether nine paragraphs dealing with foreign affairs, and seven of them were dedicated to the so-called “near abroad.” Putin put Russian interests in the context of Russian security, claiming that the problem of whether or not to support the anti-terrorist coalition “did not even exist” for Russia.
KAZAKH OPPOSITION OVERPLAYS ITS HAND, FACES REPRESSION
By Alima Bissenova (4/24/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)
BACKGROUND: Political tensions in Kazakhstan have been escalating since last November when reform-minded officials and prominent businessmen founded a new political movement, the Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan. Several senior Kazakhstani government officials were subsequently fired including deputy Prime Minister Uraz Zhandosov and Labour Minister Alikhan Baymenov, as a result of their participation in Democratic Choice. Their sacking precipitated the current government crisis.
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Staff Publications
Silk Road Paper S. Frederick Starr, Greater Central Asia as A Component of U.S. Global Strategy, October 2024.
Analysis Laura Linderman, "Rising Stakes in Tbilisi as Elections Approach," Civil Georgia, September 7, 2024.
Analysis Mamuka Tsereteli, "U.S. Black Sea Strategy: The Georgian Connection", CEPA, February 9, 2024.
Silk Road Paper Svante E. Cornell, ed., Türkiye's Return to Central Asia and the Caucasus, July 2024.
Book Svante E. Cornell, ed., "The Changing Geopolitics of Central Asia and the Caucasus" AFPC Press/Armin LEar, 2023.
Silk Road Paper Svante E. Cornell and S. Frederick Starr, Stepping up to the “Agency Challenge”: Central Asian Diplomacy in a Time of Troubles, July 2023.
Silk Road Paper S. Frederick Starr, U.S. Policy in Central Asia through Central Asian Eyes, May 2023.