Central Asia

Article analyzes geopolitics of Kazakhstan, examines how it should look like in accordance with classic geopolitical theory and how
it does look in practice, in particular in case of Kazakhstan membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and Shanghai Cooperation
Organization (SCO), which reflects Kazakh geostrategy in relations with Russia and China as the main factors of stability
in Central Asia. Additional value of the article is that it is purely geopolitical while geopolitical method (theory) is usually misunderstood
in the discipline of international relations, used rather freely often being confused with realistic paradigm. Also Central
Asia as an object of analysis is not in the centre of global academic discourse and any additional study in the field of CA geopolitics
broadens understanding of the external and internal political process in the region. The study showed that Kazakh geopolitics is
predetermined to be continental, Heartland oriented, because Kazakhstan is located in the closest neighborhood of Russia and is a
steppe land with the conservative identity totally different to the one of see powers. Therefore its geopolitical gravitation towards
strategic alliance with Moscow is very strong and even more strengthened by its president Nursultan Nazarbayev as a consistent partisan
of the Russian geopolitical theory called Eurasism. Kazakhstan membership in EEU, initially initiated by Nazarbayev, supports
the idea that geopolitical union with Russia is the essence of Kazakh geostrategy. At the same time Kazakhstan has good relations
with China, but they are of secondary importance for Astana in comparison to cooperation with Russia. SCO is a comfortable platform
for Kazakhstan to find its place in geopolitical dialogue of Moscow and Beijing. The problem is that nobody knows how Kazakh
foreign policy will look like after Nazarbayev leaves the office, but classic geopolitical theory says that geopolitical orientation of
Kazakhstan will hardly change in the long run because its c onservative land identity is too strong.
Igor Ivanov, Vadim Volovoj Geopolitics of Kazakhstan: Theory and Practice // The Russian Academic Journal, Vol. 29, Issue 3, 2014, pp. 0-0

Dynamics of Energy Geopolitics of Central Asia1 (публикация автора на scipeople)

Javed Zafar - The Russian Academic Journal , 2015

Geopolitics is the study of international relations and conflicts from geographical perspective, in other words it is also defined as the
practice of states, competing for the dominance and control the territory. Central Asia, due to its geopolitical importance has always
attracted the attention of all major schools of geopolitical thoughts especially, ‘the school of political landscape’ (English school)
and school of geopolitical organism’ (German school). This region has also been the core of Russian and the former Soviet Union’s
geopolitical imagination. Since the emergence of independent Central Asian States (CAS), struggle has erupted to control space in
this region for hydrocarbon resources and various other reasons.
Russia has reclaimed this region for controlling energy supply from the Central Asian Region (CAR) to the countries of Asia, Europe
and other parts of the world. China is focusing on the energy resources of this region to reduce its energy dependency on Middle
East and Africa countries. For China security of the import of the hydrocarbon resources through the Indian Ocean is also a reason
to pay attention towards the CAR. The US and EU need central Asian energy to reduce dependency on Russian gas supply to Europe.
Pakistan and India are also potential players in the central Asian energy game. These countries are also trying hard to engage but
due to different geopolitical problems and difficulties have not been successful. Turkey, a west Asian country with rapidly growing
economy is trying to tap central Asian energy with the help of Iran. Thus, a detailed analysis of the energy politics of global players
in the Central Asia is the subject matter of this paper. Players in the region divided in three category, all three category power’s policies
and achievement are discussed in the given paper.
Methodology: The study is based on secondary data and information. The analysis is based on empirical, historical, comparative,
descriptive methods and critical qualitative assessment of the events and political developments in the study region.
Javed Zafar Dynamics of Energy Geopolitics of Central Asia1 // The Russian Academic Journal, Vol. 30, Issue 4, 2015, pp. 0-0

The Future Prospects of the SCO in Central Asia in the Context of Strategic Cooperation Between Russia and China (публикация автора на scipeople)

Igor Khalanskii - The Russian Academic Journal , 2015

The article focuses at the analysis of the role, importance and future prospects of the SCO in Central Asian region in the context
of strategic cooperation between Russia and China. There are three views presented within regional academic...

Kyrgyzstan: Internal and External Course of Development (публикация автора на scipeople)

Vadim VOLOVOJ - The Russian Academic Journal , 2015

After collapse of the Soviet Union Central Asia (CA) was not in the focus of academic society and big geopolitical players, Kyrgyzstan
not being an exception. But today Russia is back to CA through the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and Collective Security Treaty
Organization (CSTO). Kyrgyzstan is a member of CSTO and is going to join the EEU. Therefore it is worth of broader analysis. This
study tried to understand specifics of Kyrgyz internal and external course of development. It found that internal political process in
Kyrgyzstan used to be very problematic. The country suffered a lot from two revolutions, caused by the authoritarian “family rule”
of Askar Akaev and Kurmanbek Bakiev. After that Kyrgyzstan decided to change its system of government from presidential to parliamentary
(or semi-presidential) model. But this experiment did not bring peace and stability, additionally complicated by ethnic
tension between Kyrgyz and Uzbek citizens. Possible recipe of success – bigger socio-economic responsibility of the government,
but it is still not in place. After two people revolts Kyrgyzstan was near to become a “failed state”, but orientation towards strategic
partnership with Russia and membership in the EEU can help it to survive politically and economically at the expense of Russian
geopolitical ambitions, compensate internal political turbulence by external factor of stability. Moreover, close (also institutional)
cooperation with Moscow strengthens systemic power of Kyrgyzstan in its relations with the closest neighbors, such as Uzbekistan
(not satisfied with the water policy of Bishkek) and Afghanistan (poses real security threat of Islamic extremism and terrorism to
Kyrgyzstan). To sum up, for the moment Kyrgyz internal politics is hardly predictable, also because of the parliamentary experiment,
but definite external orientation towards Russia and the EEU creates some basis for stable long term development of the country.
Vadim VOLOVOJ Kyrgyzstan: Internal and External Course of Development // The Russian Academic Journal, Vol. 31, Issue 1, 2015, pp. 0-0

Regional Security and Energy Geopolitics of Central Asia (публикация автора на scipeople)

Javed Zafar - The Russian Academic Journal , 2015

Proposed monograph discusses definitions, basic concepts and approaches of regional security with respect to Central Asia. Regional security
is a very complex concept and geopoliticians have given it to different meanings in different times and places. In the present study it has been
examined that how geopolitics has been affected and shaped by regional security theories and other factors. Generally, there are identified
five major interdisciplinary factors (social, military, physical, environmental and political) which affect security of region, therefore, all these
factors have also been analysed with respect to the study region. Further, four dimensions of the regional security and energy geopolitics
have also been discussed in respect to the study region. Under the first dimension, the foreign powers intervention in the study region e.g. like
1973 Iran policy has been discussed. Under the second dimension, the intraregional ethnic clash because of unequal distribution of oil wealth
the regional security of Central Asia has been debated. The third dimension includes a detailed study of militant attacks on oil and gas facilities
as a result of ideological differences. This sort of analysis is helpful in identifying potential militants and terrorist threats. The fourth
dimension of border dispute as the cause of regional conflicts and risk to the security of the region has been examined. In the present study
four case studies i.e. the Iran’s APOC oil embargo of 1973, Nigeria and Sudan ethnic conflicts over hydrocarbons resources, Iraq-Kuwait border
dispute and Iraq war and militant attack in Saudi Arab and Iraq’s oil and gas facilities have been taken to identify and correlate regional
security problems and energy geopolitics. Adopting this methodology and in the light of these case studies, a scenario building exercise has
been carried out related to the regional security and energy geopolitics of the Central Asia.
Javed Zafar Regional Security and Energy Geopolitics of Central Asia // The Russian Academic Journal, Vol. 31, Issue 1, 2015, pp. 0-0

Geopolitics of Kazakhstan: Theory and Practice (публикация автора на scipeople)

Igor Ivanov, Vadim Volovoj - THE RUSSIAN ACADEMIC JOURNAL , 2014

Article analyzes geopolitics of Kazakhstan, examines how it should look like in accordance with classic geopolitical theory and how it does look in practice, in particular in case of Kazakhstan membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which reflects Kazakh geostrategy in relations with Russia and China as the main factors of stability in Central Asia. Additional value of the article is that it is purely geopolitical while geopolitical method (theory) is usually misunderstood in the discipline of international relations, used rather freely often being confused with realistic paradigm. Also Central Asia as an object of analysis is not in the centre of global academic discourse and any additional study in the field of CA geopolitics broadens understanding of the external and internal political process in the region. The study showed that Kazakh geopolitics is predetermined to be continental, Heartland oriented, because Kazakhstan is located in the closest neighborhood of Russia and is a steppe land with the conservative identity totally different to the one of see powers. Therefore its geopolitical gravitation towards strategic alliance with Moscow is very strong and even more strengthened by its president Nursultan Nazarbayev as a consistent partisan of the Russian geopolitical theory called Eurasism. Kazakhstan membership in EEU, initially initiated by Nazarbayev, supports the idea that geopolitical union with Russia is the essence of Kazakh geostrategy. At the same time Kazakhstan has good relations with China, but they are of secondary importance for Astana in comparison to cooperation with Russia. SCO is a comfortable platform for Kazakhstan to find its place in geopolitical dialogue of Moscow and Beijing. The problem is that nobody knows how Kazakh foreign policy will look like after Nazarbayev leaves the office, but classic geopolitical theory says that geopolitical orientation of Kazakhstan will hardly change in the long run because its c onservative land identity is too strong.