By Stephen Blank (the 03/05/2014 of the CACI Analyst)

Azerbaijan is playing a growing strategic role, as confirmed by the 2013 Azerbaijan-agreement to build the Trans-Anatolian gas Pipeline (TANAP) to the Turkish- Bulgarian border and from there connect to the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) that  goes through Greece to the Western Balkans and  eventually to Italy. The TANAP-TAP program is the first and only genuine alternative to the Moscow-backed South Stream pipeline. In combination with the AGRI (Azerbaijan-Georgia-Romania Interconnector), Azerbaijan now has two instruments by which to become seriously engaged in European gas trade, and moreover recently suggested transit of Iraqi gas through these pipelines.

By Jacob Zenn (the 05305/2014 of the CACI Analyst)

In 2014, U.S. troops are withdrawing from Afghanistan, despite that the Taliban and allied Central Asian Islamist militant groups, such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), remain strong in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Complicating the security landscape in Eurasia, since 2011 Syria has become a front where hundreds of Central Asian Islamist militants are fighting. If Central Asians in Syria and Afghanistan carry out their threats to launch attacks against the secular countries of Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan may emerge as a safe haven, if not also a target, for attacks.

By Richard Weitz (the 03/05/2014 of the CACI Analyst)

In his annual State of the Nation address on January 17, President Nursultan Nazarbayev reaffirmed the vision of stable economic development found in the Kazakhstan-2050 national development strategy, while adding important details and refinements. He and the Foreign Ministry have since clarified the international dimensions of the strategy. Nazarbayev and other experts acknowledge the economic and other challenges in transforming Kazakhstan into one of the world’s 30 most developed countries, but can point to Kazakhstan’s exceptional past performance as an indicator of its future potential.