I. D. ZVYAGELSKAYA. THE FORMATION OF THE CENTRAL ASIAN STATES POLITICAL PROCESSES. M.: Aspect Press, 2009. 208 p.

The post-Soviet republics of Central Asia, which faced enormous and seemingly insurmountable difficulties after their unexpected independence, have been able to create viable States, restore economic growth, and take their rightful place in the global economy and politics over the past 20 years.

The reviewed book by I. D. Zvyagelsky, known for her informative publications on Middle Eastern issues, was the result not only of working with sources and works of Orientalists and historians on Central Asia, but also of the author's personal, rather long acquaintance with the region and participation in the events that took place there.

Starting from the results of the region's century-long stay in tsarist Russia and then the USSR, I. D. Zvyagelskaya used modern political science tools to analyze the processes unfolding in Central Asia, and revealed their nature and trends.

In the first sections of the book, the main milestones of the conquest of Russia in the second half of the XIX century are considered. Central Asia and its subsequent colonization, the main directions and features of the policy pursued there are described. The tsarist governors-general preferred not to interfere in the actions of the local administration, not to make too drastic changes in the usual way of life of the Muslim population, and adhered to careful treatment of Islam and its institutions. Nor was the Russification of the region radical, nor was a culture alien to its population imposed. The main focus was on the economic development of the Turkestan region - the expansion of cotton plantations and the production of cotton, which Russian factories needed. The construction of irrigation facilities, regulation of the migration movement from Central Russia, land redistribution, etc. were also subordinated to these goals. The development and colonization of the region was significantly accelerated by railway construction, which began in 1881, which significantly accelerated the delivery of goods, previously carried out by caravan routes. As the author writes, Russia's development of Central Asia by the time of the establishment of Soviet power "was just beginning."

The subsequent history associated with the region's incorporation into the USSR is characterized by "a sharp transition from the tsarist policy of relative' non-interference ' to a radical breakdown of the former structures "(p.28). One of the most painful measures implemented by the Center for the region was the introduction of a new administrative division, which was artificial in nature. It resulted in the fragmentation of individual peoples, difficulties in accessing land and water resources, and problematic borders. At the same time, the new government, unlike the previous one, had a huge impact on the socio - cultural sphere of life, which acquired a special specificity and created problems, in some cases associated with a kind of synthesis of traditional and introduced ideas, and in others with their opposition. The creation of a wide network of educational institutions led to the emergence of a layer of educated people, which contributed to the acceleration of modernization. The national intelligentsia gained the opportunity to join the world culture and science through the Russian language.

At the same time, the paper notes the ambiguous and contradictory nature of the policy being implemented. On the one hand, Russification and suppression of national traditions and religious values were carried out by authoritarian methods, and on the other hand, the development of a culture "socialist in content and national in form"was encouraged. As a result, as the author states, all the multifaceted activities of the Center related to the creation of Soviet republics,

"it led to a sense of inferiority among the national elites fed by it, who did not have the desired freedom of action" (p.34).

Forced collectivization, mass repression, and ideological pressure during the Stalinist period could not destroy the centuries-old foundations of traditional societies that adapted to the Soviet system in various ways. The economic policy of the Center was characterized by the maximum use of the region's resources while ignoring local needs and emerging environmental threats. Although the industrial base of the region has significantly strengthened, this happened in the emergency conditions of the Great Patriotic War as a result of the transfer of hundreds of industrial enterprises from the European part of the country. In general, the results of central planning of the economic development of the Central Asian republics, based on the principles of the all-Union division of labor, reflected "the inferiority of the Soviet model, despite its modernizing charge" (p.37), which also applies to the economy of other republics within the USSR.

The formation of the Central Asian states after the collapse of the USSR, which took place in the context of severing economic ties and the onset of an acute economic and social crisis, did not have irreversible consequences and border conflicts. They experienced a strong shock after being excluded from the ruble zone. The author finds an explanation for this action not so much in the economic, but in the political fears of the Russian leadership: "the desire of the Russian democrats of the first wave to get rid of the political burden of the Central Asian authoritarian regimes as soon as possible... capable, in their opinion, of supporting the communist revenge" (p. 41). It seems that this conclusion is not convincing enough and needed to be supported by reliable sources and additional arguments.

The decline in production was accompanied by the development of high unemployment in all the newly formed states of Central Asia, as well as increased processes of marginalization and pauperization of the population. This also contributed to the loss of the former advantages of the Soviet period: free education and health care, low public utilities and other social services. The book clearly shows how re-traditionalization accelerated with the loss of social security: the revival of traditional society institutions (clan, family, and community ties) it compensated for the collapse of previous institutions that supported social stability and self-preservation of the population.

Another phenomenon associated with the change in the cultural paradigm was the mass outflow of the population, primarily those who do not belong to the titular nation. If before the cultural identity of the Central Asian republics was based mainly on Russian culture, then after independence "the culture of the titular ethnic group naturally took its place" (p.46). In the changed cultural context, representatives of non-titular peoples were convinced that they and their children "have no future". Emigration has caused hard damage to the republics due to the loss of qualified personnel. The specifics of emigration from the countries of the region are revealed in a special section of the book.

The paper also shows the incompatibility of many traditional habits and customs with official strategies for economic growth and market relations - accumulated wealth is not invested, but in accordance with public perceptions is spent on expensive festivals, gifts and similar purposes.

The book describes the features of the political culture of the region that has developed over the past years in a multi-faceted and capacious way. The commitment to the principles of democracy and market relations, which is usually announced by the leadership of the Central Asian states, is largely demonstrative in nature, addressed to the Western community. Such assurances facilitate the receipt of financial aid, the procedure for admission to Western structures, etc. One cannot but agree with the author that "real liberalization of political life has not occurred everywhere" (p. 54). The presence of multi-party systems, regular elections, and a free press combined with traditional concepts makes political modernization adaptive. The authoritarian political model also led to a special type of privatization, which provided the authorities with "powerful economic levers", was accompanied by the enrichment of the bureaucracy and the lawlessness of criminal structures.

An important section of the book is devoted to the role of the Muslim religion and the Islamic factor in the socio-political life of the countries of the region. Although after the collapse of the USSR, the Central Asian states

Asia retained its secular character, and the revival of traditional culture was accompanied by an increase in the role of Islam. In addition to the search for self-identification, this trend was reinforced by external factors. Among them, there are opportunities to receive religious literature, study in foreign Islamic educational institutions, perform Hajj, and wear clothes accepted in Islamic countries. All Central Asian states joined the Organization of the Islamic Conference and were able to use the funds of the Islamic Development Bank (its regional representative office was established in Almaty). Already in the early 1990s, radical Islamic political parties began to appear in Central Asia (the paper contains characteristics of individual Islamic parties, pp. 83-91). The interaction of Islam with secular power develops differently in individual states of the region. But there is no doubt about the author's conclusion: "Whatever strategy the authorities choose in relation to Islam... it cannot ignore the fact that turning to political Islam in most cases is a kind of protest against poverty, unemployment, lack of social guarantees, as well as an essential element of socio-cultural unity" (p.90).

Almost all political regimes in the post-Soviet states of Central Asia focus on developing relations with Western state structures, international economic organizations, and corporations. The struggle for influence, markets, and resources in Central Asia is covered in the book "Changing Balances: The Interaction of External Forces", which contains an analysis of the process of diversifying the external relations of the new Central Asian states. Currently, the main players in Central Asia are Russia, the United States, the European Union and China. In their relationship, the initially observed tolerance and even interaction soon gave way to competition and fierce rivalry. First of all, this applies to Russia's relations with Western partners, after the United States, declaring the Caspian region a zone of its strategic interests, together with the structures of the European Union, began to create a transport and pipeline system for the supply of Caspian hydrocarbons and establishing trade with Central Asian countries bypassing Russia, taking steps that contradict its interests. On this occasion, the paper says: "As energy resources became an increasingly important economic and political resource for Moscow, competition in the Caspian basin zone took on increasingly acute forms" (p.109). This rivalry has extended to security and military cooperation, especially after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and the beginning of U.S. and allied military operations in Afghanistan, which led to the establishment of U.S. military bases in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan,and Kyrgyzstan, which caused concern and Russia's response.

As for the EU countries, whose activity in the region has been growing rapidly recently, the main goals for them are pragmatic - ensuring energy supplies through already created and planned pipelines (Nabucco), developing trade and creating a transport system (TRACECA) for this purpose bypassing Russia. The solution of these problems is linked to socio-political modernization and democratization in the Central Asian countries. Far from being idealistic, this is a necessary condition for ensuring guarantees for investment and normal trade relations.

Perhaps the most active player in Central Asia today is China. Its economic offensive began in the region in the second half of the 1990s and was reinforced by the creation of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. China is also interested in the Central Asian market and in receiving energy resources from the Caspian Sea, which are already supplied via an oil pipeline from Kazakhstan and a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan.

The book provides a detailed description of both the SCO and the CSTO, as well as bilateral security cooperation between Russia and individual Central Asian states. The balance of bilateral cooperation noted in this paper has recently been increasingly disrupted, which leads to a certain loss of confidence between the parties. The desire to distance itself from Russia, tighten the terms of cooperation, and in some cases violate them is largely the result of increased competition and rivalry, which allows local elites to extract maximum benefits from the proposed projects and agreements.

The special section of the paper "Challenges, Threats, Conflicts" deals with issues related to water resources and their distribution, drug production and transit, and conflicts, most often on ethnic grounds. The most detailed analysis is given to the inter-Tajik conflict, which arose on the basis of the destruction of the balance of political forces after the declaration of independence of Tajikistan and had not only interethnic, but also clan and ideological contradictions. I. D. Zvyagelskaya directly observed the development of this conflict, which turned into a civil war, and her analysis of these events is objective and reliable. The final section of the book, dedicated to the inter-Tajik public dialogue that led to national reconciliation, is undoubtedly of practical importance. The future will show how the fate of the region will develop in the future. Reading the book by I. D. Zvyagelskaya will be useful for anyone who wants to understand what is happening in Central Asia.

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