Published in Forums & Events

In January 2022, Kazakhstan experienced an unprecedented political crisis. Though since overshadowed by events in Ukraine, it marked a turning point in the country’s history - one that will have considerable implications for the future of Central Asia. Those events are the subject of a new publication by Dr. Svante Cornell, and he will discuss his analysis and its major findings at our upcoming Forum.

Date: May 5, 2022,  9:00 AM EST.

Discussants:

  • Svante Cornell, Director, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at the American Foreign Policy Council
  • Fred StarrChairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at the American Foreign Policy Council

Published in Forums & Events

CAMCA (Central Asia, Mongolia, the Caucasus and Afghanistan) is a vulnerable region grappling with a range of issues including low connectivity, economic dependency, food security, poor governance, corruption, and terrorism - all exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Not fully recovered from the pandemic's negative impacts, the war in Ukraine poses a new set of political and economic challenges. In addition, the reemergence of the Taliban and terrorist syndicate in Afghanistan has created a new phase of security challenges for the entire region. The presentation by the spring 2022 Rumsfeld Fellows examined the challenges posed to the CAMCA region by the pandemic, Taliban, and Ukrainian conflict, and suggest possible solutions.

When: Tuesday, May 3, 2022, 3:00-4:30 PM EST

Where: Middle East Institute, 1763 N St NW, Washington, DC 20036

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

Published in Forums & Events

Turkey is trying to avoid openly taking sides in the war of Russia against Ukraine. While condemning the Russian invasion and supplying Bayraktar drones to Ukraine, Turkey did not join the economic sanctions against Russia and in fact may seek to benefit from the Western sanctions against Russia, all while acting as a facilitator of negotiations between the parties. The backdrop of Turkey’s actions is gradually growing Turkish influence in the Caucasus and Central Asia. In this forum, speakers will address how Turkey’s strategy affects the wider region from Eastern Europe to Western China.

Date: April 20, 2022, 10.00 AM, EST.

Speakers:

Moderator:

Fred StarrChairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at the American Foreign Policy Council

 Register for the Zoom webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_nvN2Lu0ZROKoZASfi8Su1w

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

Published in Forums & Events

 

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

Lessons from Kyrgyzstan's Experiment with Parliamentarism

Mongolia, heavily reliant on trade with China, faced continuous challenges throughout the pandemic to maintain steady functioning of its economy. China’s ongoing closure of its border, as well as budget constraints, negatively affected the Mongolian economy. As a response to these challenges, the Government of Mongolia has proposed the economic 'New Revival Policy', which is aiming to not only solve the immediate challenges, but address the fundamental economic obstacles.

 Speakers:

Tuvshinzaya Gantulga – Visiting Fellow, National Institute for Strategic Studies

Dulguun Baasandavaa – Advisor, Ministry of Economy and Development of Mongolia

Irmuun Demberel – Advisor, Prime Minister of Mongolia

Khulan Davaadorj – Founder and CEO, Lhamour

Moderator:

Svante Cornell – Director, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at American Foreign Policy Council

When: Wednesday, March 23, 2022,
9:00 AM EST (9:00 PM Ulaanbaatar time)

The event will also be live-streamed on the CACI Facebook page and the Silk Road Studies website.

CAMCA Conversations feature unique and fresh insights from members of the CAMCA Network − rising leaders committed to cultivating intraregional cooperation. Tune in to hear the latest on current events and topics of importance to the CAMCA region directly from some of the region’s top talent and influencers across all sectors.

REGISTER

 

 Click here to sign up for CACI Forum mailing list

 Visit CACI on Facebook

 

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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

  • CACI Initiative on Religion and the Secular State in Central Asia and the Caucasus
    Sunday, 24 January 2021 13:53

    In 2016, the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program launched an initiative on documenting the interrelationship of religion and the secular state in the region. This initiative departed from the fact that little systematic reserch had been undertaken on the subject thus far. While there was and remains much commentary and criticism of religious policy in the region, there was no comprehensive analysis available on the interrelationship of religion and the state in any regional state, let alone the region as a whole. The result of this initiative has been the publication of six Silk Road Papers studying the matter in regional states, with more to come. In addition, work is ongoing on a volume putting the regional situation in the context of the Muslim world as a whole.

     

    Case Studies

    Each study below can be freely downloaded in PDF format.

    az-formula-SRSP

    Azerbaijan's Formula: Secular Governance and Civil Nationhood
    By Svante E. Cornell, Halil Karaveli, and Boris Ajeganov
    November 2016   




    2018-04-Kazakhstan-SecularismReligion and the Secular State in Kazakhstan
    By Svante E. Cornell, S. Frederick Starr and Julian Tucker
    April 2018

     

     

     

    1806-UZ-coverReligion and the Secular State in Uzbekistan
    Svante E. Cornell and Jacob Zenn
    June 2018

     

     

     

    2006-Engvall-coverReligion and the Secular State in Kyrgyzstan
    Johan Engvall
    June 2020

     Event video online

     

    2006-Clement-coverReligion and the Secular State in Turkmenistan
    Victoria Clement
    June 2020

    Event video online

     

     

     

    Articles and Analyses

    Svante E. Cornell, "Religion and the State in Central Asia," in Ilan Berman, ed., Wars of Ideas: Theology, Interpretation and Power in the Muslim World, Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2021.

    Svante E. Cornell, "Central Asia: Where Did Islamic Radicalization Go?" in Religion, Conflict and Stability in the Former Soviet Union, eds. Katya Migacheva and Bryan Frederick, Arlington, VA: RAND Corporation, 2018.