The Political Sources Of Kyrgyzstan's Recent Unrest
by Johan Engvall (06/26/2013 issue of the CACI Analyst)
Recent protests in Issyk-Kul and Jalal-Abad regions demanding the nationalization of Kumtor gold mine and the release of jailed members of parliament have demonstrated the limited ability of Kyrgyzstan’s central government to enforce law and order throughout the country. There are political sources of this social and economic instability, notably, Kyrgyzstan’s transformation to a semi-parliamentary system of government in 2010 has rooted out corrupt one-family rule but instituted a system of coalition-based corruption, where the country’s major economic, political and territorial assets are divided among political parties with a detrimental impact on their ability to govern the country.
Is The Ice Cracking Around Nagorno-Karabakh
by Stephen Blank (06/26/2013 issue of the CACI Analyst)
At the recent G-8 summit the three members of the Minsk Group, Russia, the U.S., and France, issued a statement calling on Azerbaijan and Armenia to move forward on this issue. Yet, the leaders of the Minsk Group largely repeated what they have done for years; they punted, took refuge in meaningless, high-flown, and contradictory rhetoric, and blamed everything on Baku and Yerevan. Although the two sides are not without blame, as suggested by the tense situation in Nagorno-Karabakh with periodic episodes of one or another side creating incidents that could escalate into outright conflict as well as Armenian and Azerbaijani policy, the refusal of the Minsk Group to act only ensures the continuation of this spiral.
Kyrgyzstan's Decision To Renounce Manas Transit Center Favors Russia
by Erica Marat (06/26/2013 issue of the CACI Analyst)
The Kyrgyz parliament has voted to support President Almazbek Atambaev’s decision to renounce the contract for the U.S. transit center at Manas airport. The main reasons for the parliament’s vote were primarily a response to the Kremlin’s decision to write off a large chunk of Kyrgyzstan’s debt and to Moscow’s promise to construct hydropower plants in Kyrgyzstan, as well as to Washington’s abrupt decision to dismiss criminal charges against Maksim Bakiev, son of former president Kurmanbek Bakiev. In the meantime, uncertainty lingers regarding the finality of the parliament’s decision and how the president will proceed with his plan to build an international transit hub at Manas once the U.S. leaves.
What Does Amirov's Arrest Imply For Dagestan?
by Emil Souleimanov (06/26/2013 issue of the CACI Analyst)
On June 1, Makhachkala’s mayor Said Amirov was arrested and transported to Moscow by a military helicopter. The unexpected arrest of the controversial politician, referred to by many as Dagestan’s godfather, has raised questions both inside and outside this North Caucasian republic about the true motive behind a move that was certainly approved by the Kremlin authorities. Does Amirov’s arrest imply a significant change in Moscow’s strategy toward the region’s most volatile republic, or it is rather the outcome of a tactical move without far-reaching consequences for Dagestan’s politics and security?
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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.