Central Asia–Afghanistan Relationship

Marlene Laruelle is research professor, director of the Central Asia Program, and associate director of the Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at the Elliott School of International Affairs of George Washington University.

• Introduction, Marlene LaruellePart I: The Legacy of the Soviet InterventionChapter 1: Central Asian Soldiers and the Soviet War in Afghanistan: An Introduction, Artemy M. KalinovskyChapter 2: A Oral History of the Soviet–Afghan War: Interviews with Central Asian Afgantsy, Marlene Laruelle, Botagoz Rakisheva, Gulden Ashkenova, and Artemy M. KalinovskyPart II: Afghanistan’s Northern Neighbors: Perceptions and ChallengesChapter 3: Afghanistan’s Multicentered Regional Foreign Policy, Antonio GiustozziChapter 4; Russia’s Policy on Afghanistan, Ekaterina StepanovaChapter 5: Assessing Uzbekistan’s and Tajikistan’s Afghan Policies: The Impact of Domestic Drivers, Marlene LaruelleChapter 6: Insurgent Activities at the Afghan–Turkmen and Afghan–Tajik Borders, Bruce PannierPart III: The Silk Road Initiative as a US Project for Central Asia and AfghanistanChapter 7: Parsing Mobilities in Central Eurasia, Alexander C. Diener Chapter 8: The US Silk Road: Geopolitical Imaginary or the Repackaging of Strategic Interests?, Marlene LaruelleChapter 9: The New Silk Road Initiative’s Questionable Economic Rationality, Sebastien Peyrouse and Gaël Raballand

The Central Asia–Afghanistan Relationship provides nine chapters with historical and contemporary analysis about an understudied issue involving Afghanistan. The authors offer insight into not only Central Asian perspectives, but Russian strategy and various interests in the Central Asia–Afghanistan relationship. These diverse approaches, ranging from oral histories to economic analysis, give scholars and policymakers much to consider by transcending the emphasis on Iran and Pakistan related to Afghanistan.