Central Asian Islamic States: The Challenges of Independence

Abstract

The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 allowed the Central Asian peoples to regain their sovereignty and revive the Muslim religious life. But the partition of Central Asia into five separate republics – the boundaries of which were drawn by Moscow during Soviet rule – destroyed the Islamic, cultural and economic unity of local peoples. The artificial borders also divided the Central Asian peoples and caused serious interethnic conflicts. Moreover, the presence of an influential Russian minority in Kazakhstan (25 %) and Kyrgyzstan (14 %) continues to significantly limit the independence of these countries from Russia. This reality is clearly seen in recent conflicts occurring in the Ukraine as Russian Federation forces seek to carve out parts of the country as their own. In order to strengthen their power and make the transition from feudal socialism to capitalist market and controlled democracy, Central Asian leaders adopted the secular, Kemalist model of Turkey and emulated the Turkish way of economic development. Today, however, the main threat to the political regimes in all five Central Asian states is posed not by ethnic and economic tensions, but by Islamic fundamentalists.