34
5. Poverty and inequality are multidimensional phenomena, which affect all
Eurasian economics.
6. Having control over the energy and other natural resources in the area is of crucial importance in the international relations of this new regional subsystem of
states. The governments of the Caspian Sea Region which have control over
countries that are rich in resources are face to face with two major issues. The
first issue is what percentage of the income derived from the development of
natural resources should be spent on the present generation. Another issue is
what percentage of this income should be saved for the future. Finally, how the
government spending should be arranged to support the domestic economy and
prevent it from the unexpected fluctuations in oil prices and income. (Bluth
2014:35–37)
Literature of Geopolitics of the Region
A reading of the geopolitical environment of the Caspian region is thus necessary
for an analysis of America’s foreign policy goals in the region, as it provides the
context in which it was formulated, and demonstrates the limits and incentives
brought about by US involvement in the region (Bluth 2014:35).
Paul Kubicek claims that the Caspian Basin in the post-Soviet era has become a
new focal point of international politics and economic competition for three main
reasons:
Firstly, having been neglect by the former Soviet government for long years, the
post-Soviet states in the region were in urgent need of new technology and capital
so that they could make use of their resources; secondly, the Caspian Basin is a
geographical area that is landlocked, and thus it is subjected to neighboring countries’ oil and gas pipelines or shipping adjustments for their access to the global
market, whereas there were oil pipelines only to the north during the Soviet era.
There was one oil pipeline extending from Baku to the Russian port of Novorossiysk
on the Black Sea, and another one that linked Kazakhstan to a bigger Russian pipeline network. There was also the Central Asia Center gas pipeline between its source
in Turkmenistan and extending through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and then to
Russia; thirdly, the new states that gained their independence in the region were
rather weak with varying degrees of weak legitimacy, military power, and economies. These states were also at risk by numerous divisions and both civil and external conflicts, such as those in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Most of these conflicts
paved the way for other rival and ambitious states, specifically Russia, to take
advantage of these weaknesses in the area (Kubicek 2003:180–181).
Evgeny F. Troitsky maintained that with the consideration that the US possessed limited strategies to pursue its strategic interests in Central Asia, it was the
responsibility of the Central Asian states to open themselves advancement. Hence,
the US attempted to redirect regional elites toward Washington, which was the
2 Literature Review
5. Poverty and inequality are multidimensional phenomena, which affect all
Eurasian economics.
6. Having control over the energy and other natural resources in the area is of crucial importance in the international relations of this new regional subsystem of
states. The governments of the Caspian Sea Region which have control over
countries that are rich in resources are face to face with two major issues. The
first issue is what percentage of the income derived from the development of
natural resources should be spent on the present generation. Another issue is
what percentage of this income should be saved for the future. Finally, how the
government spending should be arranged to support the domestic economy and
prevent it from the unexpected fluctuations in oil prices and income. (Bluth
2014:35–37)
Literature of Geopolitics of the Region
A reading of the geopolitical environment of the Caspian region is thus necessary
for an analysis of America’s foreign policy goals in the region, as it provides the
context in which it was formulated, and demonstrates the limits and incentives
brought about by US involvement in the region (Bluth 2014:35).
Paul Kubicek claims that the Caspian Basin in the post-Soviet era has become a
new focal point of international politics and economic competition for three main
reasons:
Firstly, having been neglect by the former Soviet government for long years, the
post-Soviet states in the region were in urgent need of new technology and capital
so that they could make use of their resources; secondly, the Caspian Basin is a
geographical area that is landlocked, and thus it is subjected to neighboring countries’ oil and gas pipelines or shipping adjustments for their access to the global
market, whereas there were oil pipelines only to the north during the Soviet era.
There was one oil pipeline extending from Baku to the Russian port of Novorossiysk
on the Black Sea, and another one that linked Kazakhstan to a bigger Russian pipeline network. There was also the Central Asia Center gas pipeline between its source
in Turkmenistan and extending through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and then to
Russia; thirdly, the new states that gained their independence in the region were
rather weak with varying degrees of weak legitimacy, military power, and economies. These states were also at risk by numerous divisions and both civil and external conflicts, such as those in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Most of these conflicts
paved the way for other rival and ambitious states, specifically Russia, to take
advantage of these weaknesses in the area (Kubicek 2003:180–181).
Evgeny F. Troitsky maintained that with the consideration that the US possessed limited strategies to pursue its strategic interests in Central Asia, it was the
responsibility of the Central Asian states to open themselves advancement. Hence,
the US attempted to redirect regional elites toward Washington, which was the
2 Literature Review