July 2017, Volume 28, Issue 3
Turkmenistan: Grasping for Legitimacy
Turkmenistan’s authoritarian president Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov attempted to use sham democratic elections in February 2017 to bolster his legitimacy both at home and abroad.
Country: Turkmenistan
July 2017, Volume 28, Issue 3
Central Asia’s Globalized Despots
A review of Dictators Without Borders: Power and Money in Central Asia by Alexander Cooley and John Heathershaw.
January 2017, Volume 28, Issue 1
The Three Regions of the Old Soviet Bloc
Today, there are three parts of the old Soviet bloc—one is democratic, another is wholly authoritarian, and a third “intermediate” group is caught between two worlds. This last should be the main focus of Western assistance.
October 2002, Volume 13, Issue 4
How Muslims View Democracy: Evidence from Central Asia
What do Muslims think about democracy? Although reliable evidence is hard to come by, survey data from Central Asia open a window on this matter of vital concern in the Muslim world and beyond.
July 2002, Volume 13, Issue 3
Clans, Pacts, and Politics in Central Asia
This region’s five republics have just lived through a remarkable first decade of independence that raises questions about “preconditions”-based theories of democratization.
October 2001, Volume 12, Issue 4
Ten Years After the Soviet Breakup: Disillusionment in the Caucasus and Central Asia
In the southern reaches of what was once the USSR, democracy seems far off. Can that change?