Published in Forums & Events

The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute invites you to join us for a book launch event on Thursday 9 December, 2021. Strong and Unique: Three Decades of U.S.-Kazakhstan Partnership, authored by Dr. S. Frederick Starr and Dr. Svante E. Cornell, offers an insight-filled account of the evolution of the relationship between the United States and Kazakhstan. Given the U.S.' interest in nuclear security and energy exploration, this relationship predates the collapse of the Soviet Union; Kazakhstani and American leaders enjoyed a substantive and even privileged relationship from the outset. Over the past three-and-a-half decades, both countries have maintained this momentum despite occasional differences and rapidly shifting circumstances.

Today, America’s relationship with Kazakhstan stands out on a regional level as the most stable and positive -- a strong and unique partnership in a part of the world that seldom gets the attention it deserves.  Kazakhstan's relationship with America, in the same spirit, stands as a model of the benefits a balanced foreign policy can bring to all concerned. 

Lunch will be served.

Speakers: 

Dr. S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute

Ambassador Erzhan Kazykhan, Special Representative of the President of Kazakhstan for International Cooperation

Ambassador Richard Hoagland (Ret.) former U.S. Ambassador to Kazakhstan

Moderator: Dr. Svante E. Cornell, Director, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute

Where: The Ritz Carlton, 1150 22nd St NW, Washington DC; Main Ballroom

When: Thursday, December 9, 2021, from 11:30 AM to 1.30 PM. The Presentation will start at Noon.

Click to Register

Published in Forums & Events

The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute invites you to the presentation of the International Monetary Fund's Regional Economic Outlook for Central Asia and the Caucasus, published in October 2021.

Speakers:

Subir Lall, Deputy Director, Middle East and Central Asia Department, International Monetary Fund

Mamuka Tsereteli, Senior Fellow, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at American Foreign Policy Council

Moderator:

S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at American Foreign Policy Council

When: Tuesday, November 30, 2021, 11 AM-12:15 PM EST

Register and join on Zoom - Password: caci2020

 
Published in Forums & Events

Afghanistan After the Taliban Takeover of Power

Co-organized by: The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at AFPC, The CAMCA Network and The Rumsfeld Foundation

This forum will examine developments in and around Afghanistan since the dramatic takeover of power by Taliban in August 2021. CAMCA Network speakers will discuss developments in the areas of security, economics and media.

Speakers:

Shoaib Rahim, Associate Professor, American University Afghanistan

Lieutenant General Sami Sadat, Former Commander of Afghan National Special Operations Corp

Omar Sharifi, Country Director, American Institute of Afghanistan Studies

Lotfullah Najafizada, Director at TOLOnews and Pritzker Fellow at the University of Chicago

Farishita Sakhi, Ph.D. Candidate, Jimmy and Rosslyn Carter School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, George Mason University

 

Moderator:

S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at American Foreign Policy Council

When: Thursday, November 11, 2021,10:00 -11:30 AM EDT

Register today!

Join on Zoom - Password: camca2021

The event will also be live-streamed here and on the CACI Facebook page.

 
Published in Forums & Events

The Pentagon's Central Asian Gambit: Putting Russia Back in the Game?

The recent reports about the Russian offer and American consideration of the hypothetical deployment of the American troops on Russian military bases in Central Asia attracted significant attention. This Forum will discuss this probability and potential implications of this discussion.

When: Wednesday, October 13, 2021, 11:30-noon AM EST


 

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News

  • Central Asia Diplomats Call for Closer Ties With US
    Monday, 26 June 2023 00:00

    REPRINTED with permission from Voice of America News
    By Navbahor Imamova

    WASHINGTON -- U.S.-based diplomats from Central Asia, a region long dominated by Russia and more recently China, say they are eager for more engagement with the United States.

    Many American foreign policy experts agree that a more robust relationship would be mutually beneficial, though U.S.-based nongovernmental organizations express deep concerns about human rights and authoritarian rule in the five countries: Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

    Michael Delaney, a former U.S. trade official, argued in favor of greater engagement this week at a webinar organized by the American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce.

    He noted that three of the five republics are World Trade Organization members and the other two are in the accession process — a goal actively encouraged by the U.S. government.

    "I've always believed that this is a geographically disadvantaged area. There are relatively small national economies," he said. But, he said, collectively the region represents a potentially more connected market, about 80 million people.

    Key issues

    In this virtual gathering, all five Central Asian ambassadors to Washington expressed eagerness to work on issues the U.S. has long pushed for, such as water and energy sustainability, security cooperation, environmental protection and climate, and connectivity.

    Kazakhstan's Ambassador Yerzhan Ashikbayev said that despite all factors, the United States does not want to leave the field to China, its global competitor, which actively invests in the region.

    "Recent visit by 20 companies to Kazakhstan as a part of certified U.S. trade mission, including technology giants like Apple, Microsoft, Google, but also other partners like Boeing, have shown a growing interest," Ashikbayev said.

    The Kazakh diplomat described a "synergy" of economies and diplomatic efforts. All Central Asian states are committed to dialogue, trade and multilateralism, he said. "As we are witnessing the return of the divisive bloc mentalities almost unseen for 30 years, it's in our best interest to prevent Central Asia from turning into another battleground of global powers."

    During his first tour of Central Asia earlier this year, Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, meeting separately with the foreign ministers of all five countries.

    That was deeply appreciated, said Meret Orazov, Turkmenistan's longtime ambassador, who also praised the regular bilateral consultations the U.S. holds with these countries.

    Uzbek Ambassador Furqat Sidiqov sees the U.S. as an important partner, with "long-standing friendship and cooperation which have only grown stronger over the years."

    "The U.S. has played a significant role in promoting dialogue and cooperation among the Central Asian nations through initiatives such as the C5+1," he said, referring to a diplomatic platform comprising Washington and the region's five governments.

    "This is where we address common concerns and enhance integration," said Sidiqov. "We encourage the U.S. to bolster this mechanism."

    Tashkent regards Afghanistan as key to Central Asia's development, potentially linking the landlocked region to the markets and seaports of South Asia. Sidiqov said his country counts on American assistance.

    'Possibility of positive change'

    Fred Starr, chairman of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute in Washington, ardently advocates for the U.S. to adopt closer political, economic and people-to-people ties with the region.

    In a recent paper, he wrote that among dozens of officials, diplomats, entrepreneurs, experts, journalists and civil society leaders interviewed in Central Asia, "even those most critical of American positions saw the possibility of positive change and … all acknowledged that the need for change is on both sides, theirs as well as ours."

    This is the only region that doesn't have its own organization, said Starr, arguing that the U.S. could support this effort. "We have not done so, probably because we think that this is somehow going to interfere with their relations with their other big neighbors, the north and east, but it's not going to. It's not against anyone."

    "Easy to do, low cost, very big outcome," he added, also underscoring that "there is a feeling the U.S. should be much more attentive to security."

    "Japan, the European Union, Russia, China, their top leaders have visited. … No U.S. president has ever set foot in Central Asia," he said. He added that regional officials are left to wonder, "Are we so insignificant that they can't take the time to visit?"

    Starr urges U.S. President Joe Biden to convene the C5+1 in New York during the 78th session of the U.N. General Assembly in September. "This would not be a big drain on the president's time, but it would be symbolically extremely important," he said. "All of them want this to happen."

    Read at VOA News

  • Read CACI Chairman S. Frederick Starr's recent interview on the resurgence of Imperial Russia with The American Purpose
    Tuesday, 23 May 2023 00:00

    Why Russians Support the War: Jeffrey Gedmin interviews S. Frederick Starr on the resurgence of Imperial Russia.

    The American Purpose, May 23, 2023

    Jeffrey Gedmin: Do we have a Putin problem or a Russia problem today?

    S. Frederick Starr: We have a Putin problem because we have a Russia problem. Bluntly, the mass of Russians are passive and easily manipulated—down to the moment they aren’t. Two decades ago they made a deal with Vladimir Putin, as they have done with many of his predecessors: You give us a basic income, prospects for a better future, and a country we can take pride in, and we will give you a free hand. This is the same formula for autocracy that prevailed in Soviet times, and, before that, under the czars. The difference is that this time Russia’s leader—Putin—and his entourage have adopted a bizarre and dangerous ideology, “Eurasianism,” that empowers them to expand Russian power at will over the entire former territory of the USSR and even beyond. It is a grand and awful vision that puffs up ruler and ruled alike.

    What do most Russians think of this deal? It leaves them bereft of the normal rights of citizenship but free from its day-to-day responsibilities. So instead of debating, voting, and demonstrating, Russians store up their frustrations and then release them in elemental, often destructive, and usually futile acts of rebellion. This “Russia problem” leaves the prospect of change in Russia today in the hands of alienated members of Putin’s immediate entourage, many of whom share his vision of Russia’s destiny and are anyway subject to Putin’s ample levers for control. Thus, our “Putin problem” arises from our “Russia problem.”

    Click to continue reading...

  • CACI director Svante Cornell's interviewed on the 'John Batchelor Show' podcast regarding Turkey's 2023 presidential election
    Friday, 19 May 2023 00:00

    Listen to CACI director Svante Cornell's recent interview on the 'John Batchelor Show' podcast regarding Turkey's 2023 presidential election. Click here!

  • New Article Series on Changing Geopolitics of Central Asia and the Caucasus
    Wednesday, 24 November 2021 11:53

    Eurasia