Heartlands of Eurasia explores how received metageographical knowledge informs the understanding of global processes and is subsequently transformed into geopolitical reasoning with foreign policy implications. It provides a detailed examination of writings, from both within the region and outside, that look into the significance of Halford Mackinder's heritage in the context of a vastly changed world situation. In particular, it attempts to examine how policy makers and strategic thinkers have used these geopolitical concepts as justification for their policy in the region. Finally, it attempts an analysis of the extent to which this policy thinking was translated into practice. While the study looks into how the vision of the 'pivotal' significance of a vast expanse of land finds its echoes in contemporary narratives, it also underlines the very creative ways in which Mackinder's ideas have been reinterpreted in keeping with the changing global dynamics. Making use of the way in which the region has been traditionally defined and the way in which the people defined themselves, the study brings into focus a debate on the usefulness of region or 'area'-based studies that are located in geographical imaginations. Anita Sengupta uses this connection to examine the following issues: geopolitical imaginations and their relevance in identifying 'areas' in the present context; the intersection between how areas are defined from an outsider perspective and how people define themselves; the extent to which these definitions have influenced policy; and the possibility or feasibility of the development of alternative geostrategic discourses. Mackinder himself did not specify the geographical area identified first as the 'pivot' and later the 'heartland,' but his ideas were focused on the 'closed heartland of Euro-Asia,' an area that was unassailable by sea power. This study therefore centers its debates around the Eurasian space in general, though the focus is on the Central Asian region and Uzbekistan in particular. The book is ideal for specialists working on the Eurasian region, graduate students interested in geopolitics as well as Eurasian and Central Asian studies, and undergraduates studying political science and international relations.

This book discusses the significance of cultural symbols/‘images’ in the nation-building of Eurasian states that emerged out of the former Soviet Union. It particularly focuses on the cases of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan in the post-Soviet era and argues that the relationship between nation- and image-building has been particularly relevant for Eurasian states. In an increasingly globalized world, nation-state building is no longer an activity confined to the domestic arena. The situating of the state within the global space and its ‘image’ in the international community (nation branding) becomes in many ways as crucial as the projection of homogeneity within the state. The relationship between politics and cultural symbols/ ‘images’, therefore acquires and represents multiple possibilities. It is these possibilities that are the focus of Symbols and the Image of the State in Eurasia. It argues that the relationship between politics and cultural symbols/ ‘images’, became particularly relevant for states that emerged in the wake of the disintegration of the Soviet Union in Central Asia. It extends the argument further to contend that the image that the state projects is largely determined by its legacy and it attempts to do this by taking into account the Uzbek and Kazakh cases. In the shaping of the post-Soviet future these legacies and projections as well as the policy implications of these projections in terms of governmentality and foreign policy have been decisive.

This volume examines the Eurasian engagement with geographies of globalisation through an understanding of the intersection of space and place in Eurasia, Eurasian encounters with globalisation in terms of shifting spheres in politics, economics and culture, levels of integration and the intricate patterns of roads and routes. It also takes note of challenges encountered by social groups and communities in the face of globalising tendencies. The role of emerging alternatives within the region and community partnerships in Eurasia has also been addressed. Written by Eurasian scholars and others working on the region, it takes note of the formal and informal linkages between local communities and the larger global arena of which they are a part. The Eurasian context and the changing contours of Eurasia’s globalised space have been addressed in this book. The book would be of value to scholars and practitioners engaged in policy debates and area studies.

Provides an all-encompassing look at the history of Russia, Central Asia, and Mongolia Beginning with the breakup of the Mongol Empire in the mid-thirteenth century, Volume II of this comprehensive work covers the remarkable history of “Inner Eurasia,” from 1260 up to modern times, completing the story begun in Volume I. Volume II describes how agriculture spread through Inner Eurasia, providing the foundations for new agricultural states, including the Russian Empire. It focuses on the idea of “mobilization”—the distinctive ways in which elite groups mobilized resources from their populations, and how those methods were shaped by the region’s distinctive ecology, which differed greatly from that of “Outer Eurasia,” the southern half of Eurasia and the part of Eurasia most studied by historians. This work also examines how fossil fuels created a bonanza of energy that helped shape the history of the Communist world during much of the twentieth century. Filled with figures, maps, and tables to help give readers a fuller understanding of what has transpired over 750 years in this distinctive world region, A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia: Volume II: Inner Eurasia from the Mongol Empire to Today, 1260-2000 is a magisterial but accessible account of this area’s past, that will offer readers new insights into the history of an often misunderstood part of the world. Situates the histories of Russia, Central Asia, and Mongolia within the larger narrative of world history Concentrates on the idea of Inner Eurasia as a coherent ecological and geographical zone Focuses on the powerful ways in which the region’s geography shaped its history Places great emphasis on how “mobilization” played a major part in the development of the regions Offers a distinctive interpretation of modernity that highlights the importance of fossil fuels Offers new ways of understanding the Soviet era A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia: Volume II is an ideal book for general audiences and for use in undergraduate and graduate courses in world history. The Blackwell History of the World Series The goal of this ambitious series is to provide an accessible source of knowledge about the entire human past, for every curious person in every part of the world. It will comprise some two dozen volumes, of which some provide synoptic views of the history of particular regions while others consider the world as a whole during a particular period of time. The volumes are narrative in form, giving balanced attention to social and cultural history (in the broadest sense) as well as to institutional development and political change. Each provides a systematic account of a very large subject, but they are also both imaginative and interpretative. The Series is intended to be accessible to the widest possible readership, and the accessibility of its volumes is matched by the style of presentation and production.

Eurasia has long been characterized by intense competition among populations and among States. The collapse of the Soviet Union constituted a critical juncture in the region’s course, since informal and formal norms subsided, giving rise to a hardly regulated socio-political environment, where survival and security considerations ranked atop. In this context, populations, first and foremost, sought to have their existence guaranteed within nation-states. While in most cases that transition was accomplished without major impediments, in the cases of Moldova, Ukraine, Georgia, and Azerbaijan, major challenges have been encountered, leaving their mark deep in the post-soviet course of the newly independent republics. Moldova has been rattled by the conflict in Transdniestria, Ukraine by the conflict in Crimea, Georgia by the conflict in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and Azerbaijan by the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. In fact, these conflicts have been classified as ‘frozen conflicts’, given their unsettled nature and the ‘smoldering fire’ between opposing populations within the respective republics. This intense competition, however, has not been constrained only to the domestic level and only to the issue of ‘frozen conflicts’. Eurasia’s energy prospects have also been the cause of a constant power struggle among the States of the region. With the Caspian Sea to constitute a rich in natural resources hub, a clash of interests has taken place among the littoral States. Moreover, this competition has acquired a much broader geopolitical dimension, extending to Eurasia’s two ends, the European Union and China. As a result, Eurasia’s underbelly has become an area where the maximization of power figures as the best guarantee of survival and security in a fully unregulated environment. Taken together, ‘frozen conflicts’ (domestic level) and ‘energy politics’ (international level) stand out as (the) two main features of Eurasia, both unfolding in comparable conditions. Therefore, the book presents them as a two-level game, aiming at offering better substantiated explanations that draw on the very fundamentals of political science, and at building a ‘bridge of communication’ between the two levels that allows for well-informed and widely applicable policy implications.

Crossroads of Cuisine offers history of food and cultural exchanges in and around Central Asia. It discusses geographical base, and offers historical and cultural overview. A photo essay binds it all together. The book offers new views of the past.

Energy has become a central concern of many strands of geographical inquiry, from global climate change to the effects of energy decisions on our lives. However, many aspects of the ‘black box’ of relationships at the energy-society interface remain unopened, especially in terms of the spatial underpinnings of energy production and consumption within nations, cities and regions. Debates focusing on the location and nature of energy flows frequently fail to consider the multiple geographical networks that illustrate and explain the distribution of fuels and services around the world. Providing an integrated perspective on the complex interdependencies between energy and geography, The Routledge Research Companion to Energy Geographies offers a timely conceptual framework to study the multiple facets of energy geography, including security, space and place, planning, environmental science, economics and political science. Illustrating how a geographic approach towards energy can aid decision-making pathways in the domains of social justice and environment, this book provides insights that will help move the international community toward greater cooperation, stability, and sustainability.

Through invasions, migrations, trade and cultural exchange, developments in Central Eurasia have, for millennia, impacted upon the history of both Europe and Asia. For the last three hundred years, Central Eurasia has been the stage upon which great empires clashed. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Central Eurasia has once again emerged as a region of geo-political concern with various new international actors involved: the USA, international monetary organizations, strategic alliances, TNCs, NGOs, regional blocks, as well as criminal groups and ethno-religious movements. The new ‘centrality’ of Central Eurasia brings new security threats to the region’s population, to Europe and to the rest of the world. Repressive political regimes and marginalization of whole groups of the population inflame conflicts that spill across national borders. Migration to Europe, both legal and illegal, the illicit production and trade of drugs are the direct outcome of social-economic destabilization in Central Eurasia. Territorial disputes, border conflicts and competition for resources among the Central Eurasian ethnicities have become the unfortunate reality. Post-Soviet Central Eurasia, as a direct neighbor to the turbulent Middle East, is a potential playground for extremist movements: radical Islamic groups and terrorist organizations. The contributors to this book, coming from various theoretical schools and presenting innovative interdisciplinary approaches, provide their views on the socio-political challenges confronting the nine Central Eurasian states - Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Mongolia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. The book presents scientific discussions on the historical development of Central Eurasia and its socio-cultural legacies; Soviet and contemporary state organization, social transformation and communal structures; the current economic conditions as a precursor to social stability and development; and geo-political arrangements and political changes over the last two decades.

This anthology of articles, short studies, and interviews by Alexandros Petersen was written over the span of ten years, starting in 2004. Yet they are even more relevant today in their prescient analysis. Petersen insightfully addressed the implications of the West withdrawing its engagement from the Caucasus and Central Asia, the expansion of the Chinese influence, and Russia’s strategic interests. The collection is organized along four main topics: (1) Eurasia and a changing transatlantic world: the world politics of shifting frontiers in the post-Soviet world; (2) Energy geopolitics in the Caspian and beyond, with its crucial implications for European energy security; (3) the Black Sea world, covering the dynamics of Russia, Turkey, and the South Caucasus, including the role of NATO and frozen conflicts in the region; (4) the new silk roads: China’s inroads in Central Asia, which is often overlooked in the West but will be critical for the geopolitical balance of powers.