At the outset of independence 18 years ago, Kazakhstan's leaders promisedthat the country's rich natural resources, with oil and gas reserves among thelargest in the world, would soon bring economic p
A specialist in Central Asian and Caspian affairs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Olcott argues that having failed to create viable states after their liberation from Soviet dominat
At the outset of independence 18 years ago, Kazakhstan's leaders promisedthat the country's rich natural resources, with oil and gas reserves among thelargest in the world, would soon bring economic p
In Uzbekistan, Central Asia's most populous country, Islam has been an ever-present factor in the lives of its people and a contentious force for political officials trying to build a secular and auth
In Uzbekistan, Central Asia's most populous country, Islam has been an ever-present factor in the lives of its people and a contentious force for political officials trying to build a secular and auth
Tajikistan teeters on the brink of failure. This mountainous and landlocked country, the poorest in Central Asia, confronts the challenges of good governance and economic survival. These domestic stru
With a rapidly growing population, deteriorating economic and environmental conditions, and an unstable imperial centre, Soviet Central Asia would seem destined to become one of the world's trouble sp
