Friday 5 February 2021 11:00am to 1:00pm
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Abstract: Central Asia faces an important stage of its development. Almost 30 years have passed since the independence of the regional states. The election of the new president in Uzbekistan in 2016 became a focal point in the contemporary situation in the region and contributed to the intensification of Tashkent's foreign policy. The latter has demonstrated increasing cooperation with neighbouring countries, strengthening trade and economic relations, as well as in seeking compromise solutions on the most pressing issues in Central Asia, including borders and water usage, among others. Such a position of Uzbekistan that keeps the special role in the region due to its strategic location, economic and demographic potential, rich history and culture has marked a trend towards the growth of regional cooperation in CA.
Despite the extremely pessimistic forecasts of some experts on the possibility of de-stabilising the situation in CA, regional countries managed to take place as sovereign states and prevent armed conflicts after the end of the civil war in Tajikistan in 1997. Resorting to systematic and comparative methods of analysis, and to the regional security complex (RSC) theory of Barry Buzan and Ole Waever, we put forward the argument of the formation of a new independent RSC in Central Asia, for the last 30 years after the acquisition of sovereignty by five regional countries. At the same time, by looking at Afghanistan through the lens of an 'insulator', we identify a country that has a significant impact on the security processes in the region and participates in the RSC of CA.
Biography: Dr Akram Umarov is Senior Research Fellow at the University of World Economy and Diplomacy (UWED) and is on the UKRI GCRF COMPASS project. Previously he worked as a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Strategic and Regional Studies and Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. He received Master's and PhD Degrees in International Relations at the University of World Economy and Diplomacy. He also graduated with MA degree in Governance, Development and Public Policy from Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex (UK).
His interest are in security studies, conflict management, public diplomacy, Afghanistan, Central Asian studies, CIS countries, public administration, global security, peace and development. Akram Umarov is the author of the monograph entitled, "Afghanistan and regional security of Central Asia: the beginning of XXI century" (in Russian) (UWED, 2017). His articles have appeared in "Central Asian Affairs", "Asia and Africa", "National Strategy Issues", "Comparative Politics", "Defence Journal" and other peer-reviewed journals.