Упрощенная HTML-версия
Author : S. Nikolaev
Deputy Director of the 3rd Department of the CIS Countries, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the
Russian Federation
CENTRAL ASIA has a rich history. At one time, it
boasted the Great Silk Road, a major trade route be-
tween Europe and China. It was also an arena where
Chinese, Mongolian, Persian, Turkish, and Arabian
military commanders led their armies in brutal battles,
prosperous towns were built and destroyed, and huge
empires appeared and disappeared. So researchers
have examined this region in the most diverse geo-
graphical configurations.
Without delving into the already distant past, let us
take a closer look at some of the main milestones of the region's debut in geopolitics.
Talk first turned to Central Asia in the 19th century when the Russian Empire began forming its
southern boundaries.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the strategic importance of this region was acknowledged
anew.
Today, the geopolitical map of the Central Asia region is distinguished by enviable diversity. It is in
the center of attention of many influential world players.
Russia traditionally holds a strong position in it. China is gaining strength in the Central Asian ex-
panse. The European Union is implementing its own New Partnership Strategy there. The "Central
Asia plus Japan" dialogue functions in the region. Cooperation is actively developing with regional
states - Turkey, Iran, India, Pakistan, the Republic of Korea, and several Arab countries.
When analyzing U.S. strategy in present-day Central Asia, experts usually try to identify the main
stages in its evolution.
At the turn of the 20th-21st centuries, the U.S. set itself the following tasks in Central Asia:
- to prevent a situation in which one state or group of states, such as Russia and China, dominates
in the region to an extent that excludes America's presence there;
- to prevent Central Asia from becoming a base for extremist Islamic forces;
- to prevent the region from turning into a channel for illicit drug circulation;
- to provide American companies with access to Central Asia's energy resources;
- to promote the development of a civil society, law-based state, and transparent market economy
in the region's states.
However, by the beginning of the new millennium, American policy had not acquired any cohesion
in Central Asia. And although Washington has managed to increase its influence in the region, it has
still not been able to achieve any clear advantages over Moscow. Their relations can best be described
as a "zero-sum game."
The economic and trade relations between Russia and the Central Asian republics established back
in Soviet times continued to develop.
http://interaffairs.ru
Central Asia in Geopolitics: The American Vector