Chinese View on the Expansion of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization*
Founded in 2001, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) now has China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as its full members, with Afghanistan, Belarus, India, Iran, Mongolia and Pakistan as observers, and Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Turkey as dialogue partners. The official founding declaration asserted that the […]
Prospects and Challenges of NATO Warsaw Summit 2016
The 2016 Warsaw Summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will take place on July 8-9, 2016, in Poland. The Summit comes at a crucial time for the North Atlantic Alliance, as the global security aspects have shifted in both the East and the South during the last years. […]
Is Georgia Moving Closer to NATO?
On February 11, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that “Georgia is moving closer to NATO thanks to its reforms, and to its significant contributions to our shared security.”[1] Further he said that prior to joining NATO, Georgia must gain a Membership Action Plan (MAP). The MAP is a NATO […]
Kazakhstan for the World Free of Nuclear Weapons
On August 29, 2016, the Republic of Kazakhstan would celebrate 25 years since the accession to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which has defined the country`s anti-nuclear policy since getting its independence in 1991. The treaty acknowledges the right of every state to use and develop nuclear energy only for peaceful […]
Central Asian Countries’ Power Systems Are Now Isolated, But Not Everyone Is Happy!*
The Central Asian Power System (CAPS) was established in the 1960s and 1970s. The system consisted of mainly 30 percent hydro power plants (HPP) of Central Asian upstream and 70 percent thermal power plants (TPP) of downstream countries.[i] The Integrated Dispatch Center Energia, based in Tashkent, controlled the electric power supply […]
Сurrent Security Issues in the Caspian Sea Region
After years of pursuing the concept that the Caspian Sea is a sea of peace and friendship littoral states were confronted with a situation where the Caspian Navy Forces were formally involved in the hostilities outside the region. On October 7, 2015, for the first time in the history of […]
Overview of Prospects for the Central Asia–Afghanistan Energy Cooperation*
Afghanistan is one of those cases where security, energy and economic development are so closely inter-related. Without any single link of the chain ensuring political stability, economic prosperity and social security in the country would be highly problematic. At the moment, due to limited energy production capacity the country is […]
China’s the Belt and Road Risk Assessment Issue
In recent years China has begun to seeking for a greater role for itself in the international order. Beijing’s intention to strengthen its global position caused launching a number of multilateral initiatives, namely, the Belt and Road Initiative, which includes the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk […]
Public Perception of the “One Belt One Road” Initiative in Kazakhstan*
There is no doubt that in this century public opinion, empowered by the mass media, sometimes can constrain certain political and economic actions. It is the case both within and among the countries across the world. The New Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road — now […]
Is the Iran–Turkmenistan Gas Trade Coming to the End?*
Iran, according to the BP Statistical Review 2015, is currently placed first with 34 trillion cubic meters of gas reserves, followed by Russia (32.6 trillion cubic meters) and Qatar (24.5 trillion cubic meters).[i] Having possessed tremendous amount of gas, hypothetically, Iran can easily meet its both domestic needs and external gas […]
