A political and economic overview -- Kazakhstan -- Turkmenistan -- Uzbekistan -- Energy exports: an overview -- Oil -- Natural gas -- Energy and development -- Energy revenues' importance to the state -- Economic development -- Revenues, transparency, and autocracy -- Energy revenues and internal stability -- Kazakhstan -- Turkmenistan -- Uzbekistan -- Central Asia and energy security
Summary
Oil and gas are proving as much a burden as a benefit to Central Asia. The three oil and gas producers in the region -- Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan -- are showing signs of the "resource curse" under which energy-rich nations fail to thrive or develop distorted, unstable economies. Geography and their history in the Soviet Union have bound them to Russia, through which most of their energy exports must be transported. Moscow is proving to be an unreliable partner for foreign consumers as it has been willing to cut off pipelines to apply commercial or political pressure. Low investment, corruption, and gross mismanagement in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan may mean that their supplies run low before they can diversify their links to markets or their economies. Central Asia is likely to see energy create instability within the region; the chances are low that it will be a factor in improving European energy security any time soon
Notes
"24 May 2007."
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and appendices
