At the beginning of the new year, the chaos in Kazakhstan, a major Central Asian country, has aroused the attention of the international community. Although, with the strong intervention of Russia, the situation in the country has initially returned to normal, it is unknown whether there will be a "flood wave" in the future. The barn knows the etiquette. The five Central Asian countries are not rich, some are still very poor, and the countries that have been in turmoil are not only Kazakhstan, not to mention that Kazakhstan is also the "superior student" of economic development in the five countries, and the emergence of domestic chaos is not the first time, let alone others.
Map of Kazakhstan
This should be briefly started from the history and economy of the five Central Asian countries: Central Asia refers to the Central Asian region from the Caspian Sea in the west, to Xinjiang in the east, Russia in the north, and Iran and Afghanistan in the south, with a total area of about 4 million square kilometers and a population of about 56 million people. It includes kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. Most of these five countries are mainly ethnic groups, and each country has its own national language. However, because they were all members of the former Soviet Union, Russian became a widely spoken language in Central Asia. Central Asian cultures are closely related to West Asia and are prominently characterized by their belief in Islam. The terrain is dominated by plains and hills, and the climate is dominated by temperate continental arid and semi-arid climates.
Among the five Central Asian countries, Kazakhstan has the largest area, with an area of about 2.724 million square kilometers. The Kazakh Khanate was established at the end of the 15th century, the entire territory was placed under Russian rule since the 19th century, it became a Soviet republic in 1936, and became independent in December 1991; Uzbekistan covers an area of about 447,000 square kilometers. In the 11th-12th centuries AD, the Uzbek-dominated state was basically formed, conquered by the Mongol Tatars in the 13th century, part of the territory was incorporated into Russia in the 1860s, became a Soviet republic in 1924, and became independent in August 1991; Turkmenistan covers an area of about 491,000 square kilometers. In the 15th century, the Turkmen nation was basically formed, part of the territory was occupied by Tsarist Russia in the 1860s, became a Soviet republic in 1924, and became independent in October 1991; Tajikistan covers an area of about 143,000 square kilometers. The Tajiks were basically formed in the 9th-10th centuries AD, conquered by the Mongol Tatars in the 13th century, occupied by Russia in 1868, became a Soviet republic in 1929, and became independent in September 1991; Kyrgyzstan covers an area of about 198,000 square kilometers. In the second half of the 15th century, the Kyrgyz nation was largely formed, becoming a Soviet republic in 1936. The five Central Asian countries have all been under the long-term rule of the former Soviet Union and have been greatly affected. Due to the abundance of mineral resources and the establishment of agriculture and animal husbandry, they exist as non-ferrous metal bases, coal bases, steel bases, cotton production bases, commodity grain and livestock product bases in the Soviet Union, so that they have not yet formed an independent and complete national economic system, the national economic structure is unreasonable and single, sitting on rich oil, natural gas and other mineral deposits, processing or semi-processing capacity is relatively weak. Agriculture still occupies an important position in the economy, and pasture livestock is the main type of livestock in Central Asia. Due to different geographical environments and natural conditions, the comprehensive national strength, development level, and economic structure of various countries vary greatly. Comparatively speaking, Kazakhstan has a better economy and Tajikistan has a poorer economy.
Kazakhstan is a resource-rich country, relying on oil, made a lot of money, in addition, its land is fertile, agriculture is also relatively good, per capita GDP has exceeded 10,000 US dollars, but also ambitious development goals: the next 30 years to enter the world's top 30; Uzbekistan is the world's largest cotton-producing country, lint cotton exports accounted for the world's second, cottonseed production accounted for the world's fifth, gold reserves accounted for the world's fourth, the output of the seventh, the days are also passable; Kyrgyzstan is rich in non-ferrous metals and hydropower resources, in addition, Gold reserves are relatively rich, relying on metal exports every year can also earn foreign exchange; Turkmenistan, with the oil and gas industry as the pillar, produces a large number of □, especially the demand of powerful countries is large and stable and reliable, achieving a win-win situation; the poorest is Tajikistan, a landlocked country, with a weak economic foundation, underdeveloped transportation, lack of oil and natural gas, is one of the poorest countries in the world.
Map of Uzbekistan
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the five Central Asian countries became independent, but the old concepts and old ideas of the former Soviet Union still restricted their thinking, and because the mind was not emancipated, the intensity of opening up was not great, the economy was single, and it could not flourish. If the energy in the international market is tight, it will make a profit, the energy is not tight, and if you can't make money, you will live a tight life. Even if they make a fortune by relying on oil and natural gas, the money has flowed into the private pockets of a small number of people, and the ordinary people at the grassroots level are still poor, which has sown the seeds of turmoil and chaos. The chaos that broke out in Kazakhstan this time was caused by many reasons, at least one of which was caused by inequality between rich and poor. As early as 2010, Zanauzin in Kazakhstan was in chaos due to the price increase of liquefied gas, killing 11 people. However, this is not limited to Kazakhstan, and Andijan in southern Uzbekistan, there was a large-scale civil unrest in May 2010; Tajikistan also broke out a large-scale civil unrest, killing 50,000-100,000 people; Kyrgyzstan is more special, there have been two color revolutions, and the internal turmoil between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, not to mention, there are external troubles, at the end of April last year, the two countries caused a dispute over a reservoir, and the security forces of both sides exchanged fire across the border, killing and injuring more than 100 people...
In addition, there is a major hidden danger that Central Asia is a region where the three forces are active. In particular, after the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan, terrorism, extremism and separatism were more active. According to reports, on January 10 this year, at a video conference of the leaders of the CSOA member states, Tajikistan President Rahmon said that in the border area between the south of the country and the northeast of the border with Afghanistan, 6,000 militants have gathered, they are the elite generals of the Islamic State of Afghanistan, they are ready to move, they can pounce on Tajikistan at any time, and if this is true, the chaos will be bigger and more serious than Kazakhstan, if it is further spread, the whole of Central Asia will not be peaceful, and the CSTA will not be easy to deal with, and the consequences will be thought. Chills.
Map of Turkmenistan
China is a neighbor of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan is one of China's energy suppliers, and the security of Central Asia requires great vigilance and attention. (Lisk)