Kyrgyzstan is probably the best known of any central Asian country, the one that has elicited the most academic publications, reports by NGOs or advocacy groups, and op-eds in the media. The country opened up massively to Western influence through development aid for civil society and for economic reforms, faced two revolutions in 2005 and 2010, and experienced bloody interethnic conflict in 2010. Kyrgyzstan is therefore commonly studied as a twin case: that of having been, for more than t...

Based on a detailed examination of Kyrgyzstan, Johan Engvall goes well beyond the case of this single country to elaborate a broad theory of economic corruption in developing post-Soviet states regionally—as a rational form of investment market for political elites. He reveals how would-be officials invest in offices to obtain access to income streams associated with those offices. Drawing on extensive fieldwork over an eight-year period, Engvall details how these systems work and the majo...

The struggle between Russia and Great Britain over Central Asia in the nineteenth century was the original "great game." But in the past quarter century, a new "great game" has emerged, pitting America against a newly aggressive Russia and a resource-hungry China, all struggling for influence over the same region, now one of the most volatile areas in the world: the long border region stretching from Iran through Pakistan to Kashmir. In Great Games, Local Rules, Alexander Cooley, ...

In this paper, three long-time observers of Russia and the EU perform a reality check on the EU–Russia relationship. All three authors agree that a more realistic EU policy would deal with Russia as it is, not as the EU wants it to be. The reality of today’s Russia is complex, as is the policy formulation process in the EU. Nevertheless, the EU should start with a clearer idea of where its own interests and priorities lie. It should accept that it can achieve fruitful cooperation with Russ...

The book reveals the interconnection between social, cultural and political protest movements and social and economic changes in a post-communist country like Russia still dominated by bureaucratic rulers and "oligarchs" controlling all basic industries and mining activities. Those interests are also dominating Russia’s foreign policy and explain why Russia did not succeed in becoming an integral part of Europe. The latter is, at least, wished by many Russian citizens.

This book provides an overview of the state of Russia after the 2012 presidential election. It considers a wide range of both domestic and international issues, examining both the run up to and the consequences of the election. It covers political, economic, and social topics. It assesses the political scene both before and after the election, and discusses the nature of and likely future of democracy in Russia. The election’s impact on the Russian economy is discussed in detail, as are Ru...

Bridging foreign policy analysis and international political economy, this volume offers a new look at the problem of agency in comparative regional integration studies. It examines evolving regional integration projects in the Eurasian space, defined as the former Soviet Union countries and China, and the impact that Russian foreign policy has had on integration in the region. Mikhail Molchanov argues that new regionalism in Eurasia should be seen as a reactive response to contemporary ch...

This book is the first in English to examine irregular migration from post-Soviet states, focusing in particular on migration to the United States. Due to globalization and the end of the Cold War, citizens of the former Soviet Union are on the move as never before. The political, economic, and social changes that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union resulted in widespread poverty and unemployment and also created a large pool of potential migrants. Thousands of individuals from poor ...

An analysis of Russia's response to globalization. This book explores how Russian domestic politics shape this international engagement. Thematically, the focus is on Russia's external engagement with areas of policy relating to globalization, namely energy, climate, health, direct foreign investment, finance, and international terrorism.

The countries of Central Asia are increasingly the focus of intense international attention due to their geopolitical and economic importance as well as their unsettled transition processes. The region faced enormous challenges when the Soviet Union disintegrated, and this book focuses on the reforms of the institutional environment that have been largely neglected.Through an interdisciplinary approach, the book explores key aspects of institution building as well as economic and p...

Much of the former Soviet bloc has become a destination for new Chinese migrants. Throughout Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Chinese migrants are engaged in entrepreneurial activities, primarily as petty merchants of consumer goods in unsteady economies. This book situates these migrants within the broader context of Chinese globalization and China’s economic "rise." It traces the origins of Chinese migration into the region, as well as the conditions that have allowed migrants to...

This edited volume seeks to understand and explain the pattern of varying national and regional success in post-communist political and economic transition across the post-communist world. Despite widespread hopes for the development of vigorous democratic political systems and vibrant market economies, the outcomes of a quarter century of post-communist transition in the countries of the former communist bloc in Eurasia have been widely variant. Some have matched these hopes, including be...