The Role of Central Asia in Modern Geopolitics

Abstract

The relevance of this article is primarily determined by the rapidly growing significance of Central Asia (CA) in contemporary international relations, serving as a crossroads of interests for the world’s major actors — Russia, the USA, China, the EU, Turkey, etc. — and, simultaneously, as a field of interaction, mutual penetration, and clash of values among the world’s major civilizations and political systems. Central Asia is not only a key region on the world map, the control of which allows for the management of global hydrocarbon transit and other strategic raw materials for the largest economies (primarily China) and, consequently, influences their economic growth, overall power, and directions of expansion. Central Asia is a crossroads of civilizations, control over which, as believed for centuries, enables dominance over the world. This exceptional geopolitical significance of the region remains relevant today.

Firstly, the importance of the Central Asian and Caspian region as one of the most rapidly developing areas for global hydrocarbon extraction and transportation is increasing sharply.
Secondly, the Central Asian region is already increasingly becoming a potential arena for clashes of interests among global players.

Overall, despite a certain degree of existing research on issues related in one way or another to the role and position of Central Asia in the system of international relations, the conceptual, institutional, and technological aspects of the transformation of international relations in the region remain underexplored in both domestic and foreign political science. On one hand, there is a solid methodological foundation and a substantial body of empirical material for studying the position of Central Asia in the international system. On the other hand, many important questions in this area still require theoretical reflection. Furthermore, the formation of positions on specific aspects or issues of the study is directly influenced by the current state and ongoing development of the situation around the region and its main actors.

The object of this study is the Central Asian region, which today serves as a center where the geopolitical, military-strategic, and economic interests of major powers — Russia, USA, EU, China, and Turkey — intersect.

The subject of the study is the political configuration of international relations in Central Asia, arising from the competition among the leading world powers — Russia, USA, EU, China, and Turkey — for political influence in the region and control over its strategic resources, as well as the foreign policy and relations of the Central Asian states with these actors.

Accordingly, based on the object and subject of the study, the aim of this article is to determine the role and position of the Central Asian region in the system of contemporary international relations in the context of the active pursuit of national interests by the leading global powers in the region.