Kyrgyzstan 8 - PONARS Eurasia

Difficult Engagements: Political Lessons from the K2 Experience

In July 2005, the government of Uzbekistan expelled the United States from the Karshi-Khanabad (K2) air base from which U.S. forces had conducted reconnaissance and support missions for Operation Enduring…

Understanding the Impact of the K2 Closure

On July 29, 2005, President Islam Karimov ordered the U.S. military facility at Karshi-Khanabad (K2), Uzbekistan to close down within 180 days. It now appears virtually certain that U.S. forces…

Avoiding the Great Game and Domestic Unrest in Eurasia

Central Asia’s growing instability has opened the region to a host of would-be political entrepreneurs. The March and May 2005 uprisings in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan underscored the weakness of Eurasian…

The Not-So-Great Game in Central Asia

The recent request of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to the United States to set deadlines for the temporary use of its bases in Central Asia, and Uzbekistan’s subsequent demand…

Manas Matters: The Changing Politics of the U.S. Military Base in Kyrgyzstan

From July 2005 to July 2006 the status of the Manas (Ganci) U.S. military base in Kyrgyzstan became a central issue in U.S.-Kyrgyz relations and within Kyrgyz domestic politics. During…

Patronage, Islam, and the Rise of Localism in Central Asia

While ideologies and elites change, patronage politics remains the preferred strategy of Central Asia’s autocrats. Aspiring presidents-for-life distribute wealth to handpicked appointees who reciprocate by implementing, to varying degrees, executive…

Small Steps for U.S. Security Interest in Kyrgyzstan

The United States faces a dilemma in Kyrgyzstan because the two countries’ short-term and long-term security interests may be in conflict with each other. For the next few years, the United States…

Central Asia’s Stability and Russia’s Security

In August 2000, as in 1999, Islamic rebels tested the strength of Central Asian government forces. Kyrgyzstan was badly hit again; what is more, Uzbek soldiers struggled to battle the…

Promoting a Strong Civil Society: US Foreign Assistance and Russian NGOs

In February 1997, President Clinton launched the Partnership for Freedom, a new program of bilateral assistance for democracy promotion in Russia and the other NIS countries. This program asks for…

In Its Own Image: Toward a Re-conceptualization of Central Asia

With the collapse of the USSR came the dislocation of the Soviet republics–not only from their former political and economic status within the former Soviet Union, but also from their…

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Kyrgyzstan