Field Reports
AZERBAIJAN BOOSTS DEFENCE PRODUCTION
By Mina Muradova (1/19/2011 issue of the CACI Analyst)
Azerbaijan has ambitious plans as a producer of defense and security equipment. While this will bring new income to the state budget, it also implies risks related to the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh involving Azerbaijan and neighboring Armenia.
On January 14, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stated that “… Azerbaijan’s defense budget in 2011 is 30 percent higher than the total [annual] budget of Armenia … we spend US$ three billion only for military expenses”.
KAZAKHSTAN PREPARES TO EXTEND NAZARBAYEV’S MANDATE UNTIL 2020
By Georgiy Voloshin (1/19/2011 issue of the CACI Analyst)
A few weeks after the OSCE Summit in Astana had reiterated the commitment of Kazakhstan and other member states to democracy and the rule of law, a group of Kazakh citizens put forward an audacious proposal to extend President Nazarbayev’s current mandate until December 6, 2020 without holding presidential elections in 2012. The popular assembly organized in the city of Ust-Kamenogorsk in eastern Kazakhstan consisted of 850 representatives from 14 regions as well as the cities of Astana and Almaty who unanimously voted for the commencement of an endorsement campaign. According to Kazakhstan’s constitution, a referendum may be organized upon the condition that at least 200,000 signatures are collected and submitted to the Central Election Commission for verification and approval.
POVERTY RISING IN ARMENIA AFTER ECONOMIC CRISIS
By Haroutiun Khachatrian (1/19/2011 issue of the CACI Analyst)
The National Statistical Service of Armenia released the report “Armenia: Social Snapshot and Poverty”, which summarizes the data of a survey conducted on almost 8,000 households countrywide in 2009. All urban and rural communities were included in the sample.
COALITION GOVERNMENT FORMED IN KYRGYZSTAN
By Joldosh Osmonov (12/22/2010 issue of the CACI Analyst)
The formation of a parliamentary majority coalition and establishment of a new government ended political uncertainty since the October 2010 parliamentary elections in Kyrgyzstan. However, due to the deteriorating economic situation, including a huge state budget deficit and rising public discontent in the country, the fate of the newly-elected government seems predetermined.
On December 17, a new coalition government was formed and approved by the parliament.
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Joint Center Publications
Analysis Niklas Swanström and Leah Oppenheimer, "Invisible Ink: Looking for the Lost Trade between China, Russia, and Central Asia", ISDP Policy Brief, 13 March 2013. 
New Silk Road Paper S. Frederick Starr with Adib Farhadi, Finish the Job: Jump-Start the Afghan Economy, December 2012.
Conference Report Cheryl Benard, Eli Sugarman, and Holly Rehm, Cultural Heritage vs. Mining on the New Silk Road? Finding Technical Solutions for Mes Aynak and Beyond (in cooperation with the Alliance for the Restoration of Cultural Heritage) December 2012.
Article Svante E. Cornell, "The 'Afghanization of the North Caucasus: Causes and Implications of a Changing Conflict", in Stephen Blank, ed., Russia's Homegrown Insurgency: Jihad in the North Caucasus, Carlisle, PA: U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute, 2012.