“Success” in Afghanistan Prompting Changes in Central Asia, Scholar Says
WASHINGTON, September 13, 2004 -- U.S. led efforts to rebuild Afghanistan are leading to a seminal shift in American policy in Central Asia and the Caucasus and development in the region, according to S. Frederick Starr, chairman of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies.
In a seminar with IRP Fellows, Starr, the founding director of the Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies, discussed recent developments in Afghanistan and Central Asia. He said regime change in Afghanistan has prompted a shift in attitudes in neighboring countries toward American-led efforts to democratize the region.
Citing the continuing stream of Afghan refugees who are now returning to their war-torn homes in the months following the U.S. led ouster of Taliban forces nearly two years ago, Starr called the regime change in Kabul a "success."
"The people of Afghanistan – three million of them – have made the decision to return home," Starr said. "Most people are dirt poor but there's enough evidence that maybe things are not as dire as they have been for the last few years." Progress in Afghanistan will be a major determinant in stability and security throughout the region, he added.
But Starr noted that nations in Central Asia and the Caucasus face an uphill battle when it comes to environmental challenges. Energy and natural resource development are key economic engines in countries like Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan. He maintained that critics of Western investment in Central Asia's energy sector have failed to understand the advantages of such development.
Starr said Western investment will mean stricter adherence to environmental regulation in a region that still suffers from the Soviet legacy of shoddy standards and minimal environmental concern. Advanced Western extraction technology will also go a long way toward counterbalancing the widespread environmental degradation caused by devastatingly inefficient Soviet extraction methods, Starr said.
"The best thing that could possibly happen is getting modern oil and gas into this region," Starr added.
Copyright © 2005 International Reporting Project. All Rights Reserved.