Field Reports
PAKISTAN-AFGHAN BORDER INCREASINGLY TURNING INTO CHESSBOARD FOR REGIONAL POWERS
By Muhammad Tahir (7/12/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)
It’s location as a major transit route to Central Asia has made Mazar-i-Sharif a focal point for interest by a number of different ethnic groups in Afghanistan. Shortly after coalition forces began bombarding Taliban targets in October 2001, the city was invaded by militias representing three major ethnic groups of the north: the Hazara, Tajiks, and Uzbeks. A power struggle followed that appears to have been tipped recently in favor of Tajik commander Mohammad Atta, who was appointed governor of Mazar-i-Sharif province by President Karzai.MUNICIPAL RE-ELECTION SHOWS WEAKENED POSITION OF PARTIES IN AZERBAIJAN
By Fariz Ismailzade (7/12/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)
Attempts to hold re-elections ever since have been hindered by the important parliamentary elections in November 2005 followed by the parliamentary re-elections in May 2006. Only now can the Central Election Commission finally devote its energy and time to the conduct of these long-overdue municipal re-elections. In fact, the holding of these elections are the latest requirements by the Council of Europe to the Azerbaijani government and its delay could have damaged bilateral relations.PRO-PRESIDENTIAL FORCES IN KAZAKHSTAN GAIN NEW POSITIONS
By Marat Yermukanov (7/12/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)
Addressing the delegates of his Otan party, President Nursultan Nazarbayev welcomed the decision about the merger between Asar and Otan as an important step towards the “consolidation of society”. On the surface it looks like a marriage of equals. Asar appeared on the political scene in the run-up to parliamentary election of 2004 and gained enormous popularity primarily due to the personal sway of the presidential daughter over regional governors, and administrative resources.PUTIN-SAAKASHVILI MEETING: NOTHING RESOLVED
By Kakha Jibladze (6/28/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)
The meeting did not start out promisingly. Originally scheduled for an 8 PM start, Saakashvili was left waiting for three hours. Once the two presidents finally met, there was a marked tension during the press conference, with both presidents interrupting each other and Saakshvili even ‘interpreting’ some of Putin’s odder statements concerning Abkhazia and Georgian territorial integrity for better Georgian consumption.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.