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1581. Preparing critical infrastructure for the future: Lessons learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic

Author:
Amelia Tomalska
Publication Date:
09-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
The objective of this paper is to provide a view on the problem of insufficient state protection of critical infrastructure throughout the Covid-19 crisis. The paper looks at this problem with regard to the definition of critical infrastructure, its content, and also the limitations of current approaches to critical infrastructure protection. The examples relating to the Covid-19 crisis show the practices adopted and suggest possible steps forward. The research methodology implemented in this research is based on a critical analysis of the existing literature. The themes described in this paper show there is an urgent need to change current critical infrastructure protection approaches to a resilience-based modus operandi. Specifically, this paper highlights the need to shift the understanding of critical infrastructure from an object-oriented approach towards essential services/functions and to highlight its complex, socio- technical nature. It also highlights the deficiencies of current, prevention-based approaches to critical infrastructure protection such as the insufficient focus on identification and management process of vulnerabilities, especially in relation to (inter)dependencies resulting from interconnections with other systems. The gravity of the situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, despite its negative connotations, can be used as an opportunity to examine the real condition of protection of critical infrastructure. The pandemic suggests that there is much left to be done and because of the unpredictability of the future, we need to start acting as soon as possible.
Topic:
Security, Infrastructure, Resilience, COVID-19, and Protection
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1582. Abstraction-decomposition space for critical infrastructure systems: A framework for infrastructure planning and resilience policies

Author:
Stig Rune Sellevåg
Publication Date:
09-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
The objective of this work has been to propose a framework that will aid governments with the development of more coherent and effective infrastructure planning and resilience policies through a system-of-systems approach that is grounded in theory for complex sociotechnical systems. The framework has been developed by using a work domain analysis (WDA). The WDA consists of an abstraction hierarchy analysis and a part-whole decomposition. Together, the abstraction hierarchy and the part-whole description form the abstraction-decomposition space (ADS) for which the system constraints apply. By imposing constraints, the WDA promotes design for adaptation where actors within the system are allowed to adapt their behaviour as they find appropriate without violating the system’s constraints. The proposed ADS consists of five levels of abstraction and four levels of decomposition. By applying the ADS, it will aid decision making related to the overall purposes of the critical infrastructure system, the values and priority measures that are used to assess the system’s progress towards the functional purposes, as well as formulation of infrastructure needs that are necessary to achieve the functional purposes. The framework is formative in the sense that it reveals how work can be done in the critical infrastructure system. This is important because it is not feasible to prescribe, describe and risk assess all possibilities for action that are available in complex sociotechnical systems, especially when dealing with unforeseen events. Future research should focus on finding science-based yet useful in practice ways for establishing values and priority measures that encompass sustainability issues and resilience standards.
Topic:
Security, National Security, Infrastructure, Resilience, Economic Security, and Adaptation
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1583. The evolution of the Hungarian Defence Forces’ volunteer reserve component after the Cold War

Author:
László Ujházy
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
When Hungary transformed to an all-volunteer force in 2004, most attention was given to the regular component and very little mention was made of reservists. The main goal of this study is to draw attention to the importance of, and the potential, in the reserve component using historical research to produce an overview of how the reserve component of the Hungarian Defence Forces has evolved since the end of the Cold War. Information was collected and analysed from the discussed time period and interpretations were made of the collected evidence through systematic methods appraising all available studies to synthesise the findings. Similarly to other countries in the region, more than a century of conscription and the Warsaw Pact legacy still haunts the Hungarian Defence Forces. Fortunately, Hungary’s NATO membership spearheaded the drive for qualitative change within the armed forces and more attention was paid to a volunteer reserve system. Hungary’s NATO membership has ushered in a new era of security guarantees and obligations which, among other things, brought with it the realisation that the time for qualitative change in the armed forces had come. Among other changes, an initial shift of emphasis towards a reserve system – followed by the adoption of the all-volunteer force model – made it clear that a new basis had to be provided upon which to address the reserve issue in Hungary.
Topic:
Security, Cold War, History, and Armed Forces
Political Geography:
Europe and Hungary

1584. The role of citizens and geoinformation in providing alerts and crisis information to the public

Author:
Fatime Balog and Tibor Babos
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
Mankind has been facing constant threats and challenges from natural and civilisational disasters for centuries. The fundamental responsibility of states is to protect the lives, health, and property of their citizens. However, protection against natural and civilisational disasters is a complex task in which the population also has to take part, and the availability of geoinformation is a prerequisite for effective protection. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the combined power of both citizens and technology in the task of alerting and informing the public of the opportunities offered by virtual crowdsourcing, Web 2.0, the role of geoinformation, crisis maps, and drones through the application of a qualitative method, by analysing case studies and by searching for internal connections between different phenomena. Citizens around the world can collaborate and contribute to the sharing and collection of geoinformation to create real-time, interactive maps. These so-called crisis maps support intervention organisations in obtaining information, and they can also be used as sources of information. The use of Web 2.0, crisis maps and drones, as well as the emergence of digital humanitarian volunteering, have fundamentally changed the role of the public when it comes to responding to disasters, including alerting them using geoinformation.
Topic:
Cybersecurity, Citizenship, Crisis Management, and Crowdsourcing
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1585. Economic coercion as a means of hybrid warfare: The South Caucasus as a focal point

Author:
Khayal Iskandarov and Piotr Gawliczek
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
The rapidly changing security environment has brought a plethora of non-military measures to the fore. These measures have completely changed the nature of hostilities by giving them a hybrid character. With regard to the South Caucasus region, the chasm among the political courses pursued by particular states makes the overall region more susceptible to diverse external threats of a political, economic, military and cultural nature. This paper focuses on the economic component of the hybrid warfare in the South Caucasus region. The issues are considered from a security point of view and not from an economic perspective. The vulnerabilities of particular nations in the region to economic coercion are highlighted in the paper and suggestions for improving them made. The authors underscore the regional unity in the South Caucasus as a prerequisite for eliminating or at least mitigating economic dependence and healing the “regional fracture” that has lasted for decades.
Topic:
Security, Hybrid Warfare, Coercion, and Economic Dependence
Political Geography:
Eurasia and South Caucasus

1586. Analysis of strategic stakeholders in the Western Balkans

Author:
Michael Minev Dimitrov
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
The purpose of this paper is to generate a model of the interplay between the main actors in the Western Balkans region in order to try to highlight major switch-factors and pathways for future evolution of the system. The study was carried out using MACTOR software developed by Laboratoire d’Investigation en Prospective, Stratégie et Organisation and École Pour l’Informatique et les Techniques Avancées. This computer-assisted method creates a hierarchy of objectives based on the mobilisation rates and gives some insight into what is at stake and the interested parties. The paper calculates the competitiveness index of each actor included in the model and the weighted valued position matrix showing both valence and mobilisation rate of actor-objective pairs. Valued convergence and divergence matrices (with graphic representation) outline the structure of the region. The results obtained can be used to develop possible scenarios. The structure of the Western Balkans region is subordinated to a single major divergence which is translated to the internal actors. Insulator states are losing relative weight with a narrowing field of manoeuvres. Bosnia and Herzegovina has become a focal point of polarity with a distinct vulnerability to the future line of behaviour of the Croatian element in the country
Topic:
Security, Science and Technology, Armed Forces, and Stakeholders
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe, Balkans, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina

1587. High power wireless power transfer for the future of the battlefield challenges

Author:
Mohamed Zied Chaari, Rashid Al-Rahimi, and Otman Aghzout
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
A significant challenge for the military lab is to reduce the weight of a combatant’s battery on the battlefield. Soldiers use electronic devices powered by wearable batteries in landings, operational combat with the enemy, and defensive exercises. Soldiers should always fully charge their wearable batteries before carrying them. The average weight of the battery is approximately 20 kilograms. During military operations, fighters have numerous electronic devices, such as night-vision goggles, headphones, LMR, navigation systems, VHF radios, and sensors. There is a high probability that fighters will lose their lives if the battery they take is uncharged or empty. Many research studies have tried to increase fighting time and maintain soldier life and links based on these devices. In this work, a wireless power transmission system with an RF microwave station and RF/DC converter circuit incorporated into a bulletproof vest will be designed. This system can harvest RF microwave energy to recharge or energize the wearable battery during a military operation. The challenge here is to develop a compact device that can capture the maximum RF strength to charge batteries carried by soldiers. The proposed device therefore considers all parameters to provide sufficient energy to power a computer at 13 watts. The strength of the RF power varies with the distance between the microwave power station Pin = 100 W and the receiver circuit.
Topic:
Security, Science and Technology, Armed Forces, and Military
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1588. The cost of appeasement

Author:
Larry P. Goodson
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
The 1938 Munich Agreement (Akehurst, 1972) by which the Allies allowed Adolf Hitler’s Germany to take the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia is also known as the Munich Betrayal or, to English speakers, as appeasement by Neville Chamberlain (Valladares, 2020). This historical moment reminds me very much of how the West has dealt with Russia since Vladimir Putin rose to power. Like Adolf Hitler, Vladimir Putin has been sending aggressive signals to his neighbours and Western nations (Putin, 2007) since his 2005 speech arguing that the collapse of the Soviet empire ‘was the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the [20th] century’” (Putin, 2005). Note that he did not mention the Bloodlands that Timothy Snyder described, i.e. the killing of 14 million people in Central and Eastern Europe (Snyder, 2010), or World War II (Halloran, 2015) as the greatest catastrophe.
Topic:
War, International Security, Vladimir Putin, Appeasement, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Europe

1589. The Geopolitical Consequences of COVID-19: Assessing Hawkish Mass Opinion in China

Author:
Joshua Byun, D. G. Kim, and Sichen Li
Publication Date:
01-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Political Science Quarterly
Institution:
Academy of Political Science
Abstract:
JOSHUA BYUN, D.G. KIM, and SICHEN LI examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Chinese public’s foreign policy attitudes. Drawing on original surveys fielded in China during the first six months of the global pandemic, they find that ordinary Chinese citizens are optimistic about China’s future global position, and that this optimism corresponds with the widespread perception that the COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating China’s rise relative to the United States.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Public Opinion, Geopolitics, Survey, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
China, Asia, and United States of America

1590. After Trump: Enemies, Partisans, and Recovery

Author:
Christopher J. Fettweis
Publication Date:
01-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Political Science Quarterly
Institution:
Academy of Political Science
Abstract:
CHRISTOPHER J. FETTWEIS discusses what political polarization in the United States has in common with the relationship between the Cold War superpowers. He argues that in both cases the “enemy image” warps perception of the other side and prevents meaningful reconciliation. Applying insight from international relations to U.S. domestic politics, he discusses the pernicious effects of the enemy image and how to overcome it.
Topic:
International Relations, Domestic Politics, Donald Trump, and Polarization
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

1591. Introducción a “Recursos desiguales: retos de la seguridad en la encrucijada de la sostenibilidad”

Author:
Rosa Ana Alija Fernández
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal on International Security Studies (RESI)
Institution:
International Security Studies Group (GESI) at the University of Granada
Abstract:
En lo que va de década,el mundo está asistiendo a una sucesión vertiginosa de amenazas a la seguridad: desde la agresión de Rusia a Ucrania, que ha reavivado tensiones militares entre potencias que parecen evocarla Guerra Fría–con amenaza nuclearincluida–,hasta la pandemia de la COVID-19, la carestía de alimentos, la escasez de energía, o los efectos de la aceleración del cambio climático yla degradación medioambiental. Calificar este último bloque de “nuevas amenazas” sería despreciar la realidad de buena parte de la población mundial, que lleva décadas experimentándolas, y que ya fueron señaladascomo amenazas a la paz y la seguridad por Kofi Annan en su informe Un concepto más amplio de la libertad(SGNU, 2005: párr. 78). Lo que resulta realmente novedoso es que ahora están impactando de lleno en los países desarrollados, que ya no pueden limitarse a tratar de repeler los efectos de estosfenómenos en otros puntos del planetacomo parte de su agenda de seguridadnacional(Wilkin, 2002: 634, 641).Por el contrario, empiezan a constatar que la rápida expansión desde los años 90 del modelo económico neoliberal en un planeta que dispone de recursos limitados está generando ya riesgos a supropia seguridad nacional, además de a la seguridad internacional.Así, poco ha tardado en comenzar a materializarsela previsión realizada porPaul Rogers,quienha señalado que en las dos próximas décadas habrá tres factores predominantes de inseguridad global: i) una turbulenta economía mundial basada en un sistema neoliberal fallido que está incrementando las brechas socioeconómicas, ii) los límites medioambientales a la actividad humana, y iii) el arraigo de una cultura de la seguridad centrada en el uso de fuerza militar como respuesta a las amenazas, incapaz de asegurar la paz y la estabilidad en un mundo socioeconómicamente dividido y medioambientalmente constreñido (Rogers,2019: 139).
Topic:
Security, Natural Resources, Inequality, and Sustainability
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1592. La pobreza como vector de inseguridadglobal e interna: una aproximación regulatoria

Author:
Jordi Bonet
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal on International Security Studies (RESI)
Institution:
International Security Studies Group (GESI) at the University of Granada
Abstract:
Este estudiopretende realizar una reflexión, desde una aproximación esencialmente político-jurídica internacional, sobre la pobreza como un vector susceptible de generar amenazas a la seguridad, tanto desde una perspectiva global como interna de los Estados. Sin desdeñar un enfoque de este tenor (especialmente, si es un enfoque desde el prisma de la seguridad humana), se entiende que la securitización de la lucha contra la pobreza no es demasiado útil para abordarlos problemas que genera y potenciar el desarrollo. Se aboga por orientar la centralidad político-jurídica de la lucha contra la pobreza desde su comprensión como un asunto de interés público global, al que el planteamiento programático de los ODS y el Derecho internacional de los derechos humanos ofrecen una base regulatoria sólida (sin perjuicio de las dificultades reales de llevar a cabo este programa y ejecutar las normas jurídicas internacionales sobre derechos humanos). Asimismo, no se ha querido dejar de lado la importancia colateral, pero propia, de la desigualdad.
Topic:
Human Rights, Poverty, Governance, Inequality, Sustainable Development Goals, and Securitization
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1593. De la Agenda para la Paz a Nuestra Agenda Común: la “sostenibilidad” de la paz

Author:
Eugenia López-Jacoiste Díaz
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal on International Security Studies (RESI)
Institution:
International Security Studies Group (GESI) at the University of Granada
Abstract:
El presente artículo analiza el alcance de las agendas políticas de la Naciones Unidas en relación con la paz y la seguridadinternacionales.La percepción integral de las relaciones entre “paz”, “seguridad”y “desarrollo”justifica las nuevas perspectivas multidimensionales, preventivas ysostenibles de toda actividad de construcción y consolidación de la paz, que sigue siendo el principal propósito de esta Organización.En Nuestra Agenda Común(2021), el Secretario General contempla acciones concretas de muy diversa índoley diversidad de materias paraerradica las causas últimas que generan inseguridad y que son un obstáculo para el desarrollo sostenibleal que aspira la comunidad internacional de conformidad con laAgenda 2030. Apuesta porunamayor inversión en prevención y consolidación de la pazcon medidasque van desde el control de armamentos hasta la financiación de las estructuras de consolidación de la paz, pasando por la erradicación de la violencia, en particular contra la mujer,y la búsqueda de nuevos modelos asociativos y cooperativos, pero más allá de los acuerdos previstos en el capítulo VIII de la Carta.
Topic:
Security, Development, United Nations, Sustainable Development Goals, and Peace
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1594. Pobreza y desigualdad en laagendadel Consejo de Seguridad: un análisis de sus resoluciones

Author:
Rosa Ana Alija Fernández
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal on International Security Studies (RESI)
Institution:
International Security Studies Group (GESI) at the University of Granada
Abstract:
El examen de las resoluciones del Consejo de Seguridad en las que menciona los términos pobrezay desigualdadpermite observar un creciente interés por estas realidades sobre todo desde la perspectiva de la prevención de conflictos y en relación con la construcción de la paz. Sin embargo, el uso que hace de sus competencias para abordarlas no resulta adecuado para luchar contra la pobreza. Antes al contrario, el modelo de gobernanza que fomenta a tal fin puede agravar las desigualdades en países que salende conflictos armados.
Topic:
Poverty, Governance, Inequality, and UN Security Council
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1595. Empleo-salarios: un binomio clave para garantizar la seguridad económica

Author:
Juan Antonio Alujas Ruiz
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal on International Security Studies (RESI)
Institution:
International Security Studies Group (GESI) at the University of Granada
Abstract:
La seguridad económica en su vertiente laboral está ligada tanto al empleo como a los salariosy acaba repercutiendo sobre el nivel de bienestarde una sociedad. El objetivo de este trabajo es determinarlas diferencias entre los paísesde la Unión Europeaen relación con el grado de seguridad económica,en base ala carencia de empleo o a suprecariedad y a la insuficiencia de los ingresos, considerando el impacto desigual según el género, la edad, el nivel de estudios, el tipo de contrato y jornadalaboral.Los datos analizados muestran que laprecariedadlaboral genera pobreza,poniendo en jaque unode los elementos clave para la seguridad interioreuropea como es la inclusión social.
Topic:
Poverty, Employment, Economic Security, and Wages
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1596. Tecnología y desigualdad: la gobernanza tecnológica como nuevo paradigma de la seguridad internacional

Author:
Milena Costas Trascasas
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal on International Security Studies (RESI)
Institution:
International Security Studies Group (GESI) at the University of Granada
Abstract:
En este trabajo examinamos el impacto que la introducción de las tecnologías digitales y la inteligencia artificial está teniendo en materia de igualdad y discriminación. El análisis de la arquitectura global de gobernanza existente, y de las propuestas para su remodelación, demuestra que existen numerosos aspectos que aún no se encuentran lo suficientemente desarrollados, lo que produce el riesgo de exacerbar las desigualdades y perpetuar las discriminaciones. La regulación de las actividades de las empresas multinacionales para anticipar y mitigar los impactos negativos sobre los derechos humanos que se derivan de las mismas y para que rindan cuentas por posibles daños, se presenta como elemento esencial en este contexto. Igualmente se precisa la adopción de acuerdos internacionales que se apliquen con carácter general a aquellas tecnologías que, por su propia naturaleza, tienen el potencial de poner en riesgo la paz y la seguridad internacionales. Este proceso debe perseguir el objetivo de ofrecer igualdad de oportunidades a los ciudadanos, la protección de los valores compartidos entre los Estados y, en definitiva, el bien común de la humanidad.
Topic:
Human Rights, Science and Technology, International Security, Governance, Democracy, Inequality, and Discrimination
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1597. La OTAN y los límites del crecimiento

Author:
José Luis Gordillo
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal on International Security Studies (RESI)
Institution:
International Security Studies Group (GESI) at the University of Granada
Abstract:
La nueva guerra fría, cuya primera batalla parece estar librándose en Ucrania, se produce en un contexto muy diferente al de la guerra fría del siglo veinte. En la tercera década del siglo veintiuno, el mundo se enfrenta a las consecuencias dela superaciónde buena parte de los límites de sostenibilidad, cuyas principales manifestaciones son el cambio climático, el agotamiento de muchas materias primas y la crisis energética. Este hecho puede conducir a una lucha desesperada por los recursos limitados entre países y regiones. En estas circunstancias, una nueva confrontación planetaria entre potencias nucleares es lo que menos necesita la humanidad para poder afrontar con éxito los grandes problemas globales. En este artículo se propone una reflexión crítica sobre estas cuestiones con el fin de reivindicar el retorno a las políticas de cooperación internacional y de resolución pacífica de los conflictos.
Topic:
NATO, Cold War, International Cooperation, Natural Resources, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1598. Building Bridges over Caspian: South Caucasus-Central Asia Cooperation

Author:
Farid Shafiyev
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Caucasus Strategic Perspectives
Institution:
Center of Analysis of International Relations (AIR Center)
Abstract:
The current issue of the Caucasus Strategic Perspectives (CSP) journal entitled “Building Bridges over Caspian: South Caucasus-Central Asia Cooperation” is dedicated to the new paradigms for peacebuilding and geopolitical gaps, as well as possible confrontation and cooperation matrices in the South Caucasus region with focus on security, economic, humanitarian, political and geopolitical aspects. The CSP’s new issue includes 7 articles and 1 book review. The CSP’s current authors analysed the EU’s increasing mediation role towards the South Caucasus region, the importance of the Middle Corridor for transregional connectivity, the recent processes in the South Caucasus region in the light of ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, Türkiye’s engagement, as well as the US strategic interests in this region, the possibility of the potential threats for South Caucasus, etc.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, European Union, Geopolitics, Strategic Interests, Peacebuilding, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia, Central Asia, Turkey, Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, South Caucasus, and Caspian Sea

1599. INDIA-CHINA STRATEGIC COMPETITION IN THE INDIAN OCEAN

Author:
Chuong Nguyen, Binh Nguyen, Hiep Tran, and Mi Le
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:
Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:
The XXI is considered by major countries in the Asia-Pacific region as ‘the century of sea and ocean’ and is accompanied by fierce competition among the nations to gain interest in the sea regions. On the basis that previously only considered the competition for military objectives, geostrategic bases and traffic channels through the straits, nowadays, countries worldwide have stepped up the competition for economic interests and marine resources. The development of military power and the competitive activities for resources at sea show clear the tendency to use the sea to contain the continent. In that context, the Indian Ocean, as the world’s third largest ocean, has an important geographic location and rich and diverse natural resources; the arterial sea route is gradually becoming the center of new world geopolitics and an important area in the strategic competition between two ‘Asian giants’ - India and China. The competition between these countries in the Indian Ocean is growing and profoundly impacts the region’s stability and security. This article focuses on the position and important role of the Indian Ocean in the policies of India and China, the fierce competition between the two countries in nearly two decades of the XXI century.
Topic:
International Relations, Military Affairs, Geopolitics, and Strategic Competition
Political Geography:
China, India, Asia, and Indian Ocean

1600. KAZAKHSTAN AMID UNREST AND INSTABILITY: MAIN IMPLICATIONS

Author:
Aram Terzyan
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:
Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:
This paper explores the reasoning and implications of the unrest in Kazakhstan unleashed in January of 2022. This crisis was the most severe form of violence that Kazakhstan has endured since gaining independence. It distorted Kazakhstan’s image as a stable country. While the crisis was limited to the territory of Kazakhstan and developed mainly from domestic problems, it undeniably acquired an important international element. Kazakhstan’s appeal to the CSTO presented a drastic change in Kazakhstan’s foreign policy and ensued in the shift in the balance of power in the greater Eurasian region. Although Russia played a relatively subtle role on the ground, Russia’s involvement was set to link the political future of Kazakhstan to Russia for an unspecified amount of time. The study concludes that Kazakhstan is faced with the challenges of undertaking significant reforms to lower the possibility of further instabilities while remaining true to its multi-vector foreign policy agenda amid Russian intrusion.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Reform, Domestic Policy, and Civil Unrest
Political Geography:
Russia, Central Asia, and Kazakhstan