A Letter from the Editors

Dear Reader

Central asia has long been a venue of contest among great powers. in the 19th century, the British and russian empires vied for influence in the region, using both military power and diplomacy in what came to be called the Great Game. in the 20th century, soviet control over most of the region assured that the United states, too, would take an interest in what happened there, although much of that focused on afghanistan, with all the attendant tragedy for the soviet Union and later the Us — and for the people of afghanistan.

But today, Central asia is emerging in an altogether different light. to be sure, great-power interests continue to operate in the background, and sometimes in the foreground, as russia’s longtime sphere of influence is increasingly transformed or displaced by growing Chinese influence, including through the Beijing-led Belt and road initiative. turkey’s longtime links have also deepened and grown. even Us and european companies are now beginning to see the potential of investing in Central asia.

But profound changes of another order are also taking place in the five Central asian countries that obtained independence from the former soviet Union — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, tajikistan, turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. as the articles in the cover package of this issue of Global Asia illustrate, a sense of Central asian identity is slowly emerging. With it is coming greater calls for regional co-operation and integration, and collective approaches to addressing common problems. With its rich natural resources, its relatively youthful population and its location at strategic crossroads between north and south and between east and west, Central asia is collectively poised to become a new middle power in the region.

the essays in this cover package have their origin in a conference in astana, Kazahkstan, entitled “asia in a Changing World: an agenda for the Future.” the conference, in July 2023, was organized by the government-funded Kazahkstan institute for strategic studies.

elsewhere, in our Features section, we examine how russia’s pivot to asia is faltering amid Moscow’s growing isolation from the economies of the Us and its allies; reveal the overlooked role that north Korea has played in assisting extremists in the Middle east, including sharing tunneling techniques that are figuring in the conflict in Gaza; how that conflict between israel and Hamas is raising fears of a rise in violent extremism in southeast asia; whether the legacy of outgoing indonesian President Joko Widodo has strengthened or weakened democracy in the country; and what Chinese literature tells us about utopias and dystopias in China.

in our in Focus section, meanwhile, we ask what november’s summit in California between Us President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping really achieved.

Our Book review section, as always, spotlights some great writing about asia, including a range of both long and short reviews, which we hope will shape your reading list for the new Year.

Sincerely yours,

Chung-in Moon Editor-in-chief

David Plott Managing Editor