Interethnic Tensions in Kyrgyzstan: A Political Geographic Perspective

Two U.S. geographers review an array of intertwining political geographic issues that provide context and set the stage for deadly armed conflict between groups of ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz in the southern Kyrgyzstan city of Osh in June 2010. Applying a disaggregated and localized approach to underst...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Eurasian geography and economics 2010-07, Vol.51 (4), p.531-562
Main Authors: Bond, Andrew R., Koch, Natalie R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Akayev
Bakiyev
Bgi / Prodig
clans
Collective Security Treaty Organization
color revolutions
corruption
Corruption in government
diaspora
drug trafficking
ethnic conflict
ethnopolitical entrepreneurs
Europe
Former USSR
International relations
Kazakhstan. Republics of Middle Asia
Kyrgyzstan
Minority & ethnic violence
National security
Organized crime
Osh
Political behavior
smuggling
Studies
terrorism
Uzbekistan
virtual regionalism
water management
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Summary:Two U.S. geographers review an array of intertwining political geographic issues that provide context and set the stage for deadly armed conflict between groups of ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz in the southern Kyrgyzstan city of Osh in June 2010. Applying a disaggregated and localized approach to understanding the ambiguous and complex factors underlying the current instability in Kyrgyzstan, they focus on: the role of north-south political competition; the country's uneasy economic relationship with its western neighbor, Uzbekistan; widespread official corruption and the penetration of organized crime into government structures; as well as broader geopolitical issues. The latter include Tashkent's policy toward the Uzbek diaspora, perceived threats from international terrorism/Islamist fundamentalism, the potential for the export of a "color revolution" to Uzbekistan, the presence of U.S. and Russian military forces in Central Asia, and the relative ineffectiveness of regional security structures such as the Collective Security Treaty Organization.
ISSN:1538-7216
1938-2863
DOI:10.2747/1539-7216.51.4.531