The Implementation of the European Strategy for a New Partnership with Central Asia: an Overview

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the achievements and the results obtained by the European Union after two years of implementation of the strategy for a new partnership with Central Asia. Launched in 2007, this strategy represents a new EU approach to a strategically and geopolitically important region. In spite of some indisputable progress in political relationships between the EU and the five Central Asian republics and in the energy sphere, little progress has been registered in the human rights field and in the democratisation process.

As a potential geopolitical player in the region, at present the EU privileges a realpolitik approach in its relations with the Central Asian republics, as this European strategy appears to be focused on securing access to the region’s energy supplies and ensuring that the states of Central Asia assist western countries involved in the conflict in Afghanistan. However, China and Russia’s strong influence over the Central Asian republics seriously jeopardizes the achievement of these European geopolitical goals.

• Primary Source

ISPI: Policy Brief: The Implementation of the European Strategy for a New Partnership with Central Asia: an Overview [PDF] http://www.ispionline.it/sites/default/files/pubblicazioni/pb_155_2009_0.pdf

---