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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LindyBill who wrote (80816)	10/26/2004 9:40:20 AM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 793843

BARNETT - The Central Asian calm spot ¦"A Calm Island in Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Despite Absolutist Leader, See Relative Success," by Hugh Pope, Wall Street Journal, 21 October 2004, p. A17. Kazakhstan is definitely in the Gap, but it does stand out among the other Central Asia "republics" for its relative calm (no real terrorism), its firm legal rule sets, and its ability to attract foreign direct investment for its significant energy reserves. And did I mention they willingly gave up their nukes long ago in the 1990s? See how easy it can be? Kazakhstan is far bigger than the other states in the region at 15 million. Turkmenistan, rich in natural gas, has taken the smart strategic step of dramatically disconnecting itself from the global economy right as FDI is frantically searching for places to invest in gas. I see that country going nowhere fast. Kyrgyz tried hard to market its mountain beauty for tourism (a "Central Asian Switzerland"), but there weren't any takers apparently, so it's dependent on official developmental aid (and we know how fast countries grow on ODA). Tajikistan has enough violent factions fighting over bits of land to keep both businessmen and tourists away. Uzbekistan is "stuck in a five-year-old vicious circle of economic stagnation, Islamist terrorism, oppression and growing popular anger with the government." Hmmm, that last one is almost the Kerry Camp's description of the first Bush Administration! Meanwhile, Kazakhstan muddles along in stability. Yes, the country is ruled by a de facto dictator who engineers his own elections, but there is strong growth thanks to rising oil prices and—here's the real good part (because the rest up to now could describe any Persian Gulf dictatorship)—"a solid banking system and an oil-revenue windfall are creating the beginnings of a regional financial center in Almaty, Kazakhstan's biggest city." President Nursultan Nazarbayev is nobody's poster boy for democracy, but he is taking a page out of the Asian Tigers' playbook by luring FDI with a relatively clean financial system. And guess what? Despite all the same tensions found elsewhere in the region, there's no Islamic terror. Other keys include a highly educated population (thanks, Mother Russia) and a diversified economy (meaning oil is just one-quarter of the economy). When asked which country it wants to be compared to, citizens of Kazakhstan don't mention anyone in the region or in the Persian Gulf. Instead, they point to Turkey or Poland. That, my friends, is an Islamic country headed in the right direction. Should we be surprised it lies right along the seam between Core and Gap (its three biggest borders are Russia, Mongolia and China)? No. There is a real geographic component to integration into the Core's stable rule set on security.

To: LindyBill who wrote (80816)	10/26/2004 9:48:06 AM
From: SBHX	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793843

I can't figure out Zbigniew Brzezinski, under his watch as Jimmy Carter's National Security Advisor, we have the withdrawal of support from the Shah of Iran, we have the establishment of the first major successful theocracy, we have the subsequent hostage crisis, we have the growth of islamic terrorism, we have continuous capitulation and appeasement to the european peace movement, and we have daily threats about hands moving on the atomic clock. What I can't figure out is, most of us of sufficient stature working in any industry are judged by our track record. A continuous failed track record of sufficient scope would make us lose all credibility, plus the difficulty of finding gainful employment. But what I really scratch my head about is : why are the words of this guy still wasting the ink in major publications? Do people find him and put his words up just to have another figure to laugh at?