Americans Still Think All Stans Are Same
It’s a tragedy, but the United States administration’s concept of wider Central Asia, equating secular, peaceful and semi-european Kazakhstan with Muslim, unrest and economically backward Afghanistan or Pakistan is still in minds of the White House officials. Not only this is a faulted logic and primitive generalization, but also a sentence to democratic aspirations of the Kazakh people — we are told that we are the best among Stans, and that’s enough.
The recent testimony by Assistant Secretary Richard Boucher, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, U.S. Department of State, delivered April 8 in the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and the Global Environment again proves this ridiculous obstinacy. Speaking about new bridge over the Pyanzh River on Tajik-Afghan border, he said that “it is an important piece of a future regional highway network extending from Karachi, Pakistan to Astana, Kazakhstan”. Why? Is it what Kazakhstan wants - a highway to Karachi!? Or more roads, pipelines and flights to Europe? I bet the second wins if you ask any on the streets of Kazakh cities.
on April 17th, 2008 at 9:58 am
On the streets, yes: there is no affinity or identification at all between, say, people in Semipalatinsk and Lahore.
But that is not the purpose of the US’ understanding of Greater Central Asia I think. If Greater Central Asia is seen as a virtual geopolitical zone stretching all the way from Petropavlovsk and Atyrau to the Makran coast, a zone where the Anglo-Saxon axis (US, UK), Russia and China compete, all expand their economic and military influence and will eventually also clash either directly or through proxies, then the concept Greater Central Asia makes perfect sense.
It’s also about creating alternative, south- and westward transport corridors for Caspian oil and gas that avoid Russian territory and the control of the Kremlin, Gazprom and other Russian multinationals.
“equating secular, peaceful and semi-european Kazakhstan with Muslim, unrest and economically backward”
What do you equate ‘Muslm’ with ‘backward’. Kazkahstan is semi-Muslim as well, rather nominally still but in any case this aspect of its identity will increase in importance.
“it is an important piece of a future regional highway network extending from Karachi, Pakistan to Astana, Kazakhstan”.
Bwah I think you have to look beyond the peptalk. It’s like these countless declarations refering to ‘the new Silk Road from Peking to Istanbul’ and what all.
on April 20th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
come on, I did not equate muslim and backward. I was contrasting a secular state with a muslim one.