The New Great Game

The new great game is a current competition between the United states of America, Russia, China, Turkey, India, Iran, and Pakistan to secure reliable long-term resources of petroleum and natural gas trough the construction of oil pipelines in the past-Soviet nations of central Asia. The term was coined by Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid in reference to the original Great Game between the British Empire and the Russian Empire for strategic supremacy in Central Asia in the 19^th and early 20^th century.

          British and Russian involvement in the region go back to the 19^th century Great Game, while the United States is a late-comer, dating back to Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. In order to counter Soviet expansion, the American government funded the Afghan Mujahideen from 1985 to 1992. The situation is complicated by the mutual desire of major powers, most of all the United States, to establish military bases in Central Asia for counter- terrorism . The Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a security organization headed by China and Russia, issued a statement in 2005 calling on the US to establish a timetable for withdrawal of US military presence in Central Asia.

          While the mostly-western great powers try to exert their influence over Central Asia to gain a foothold over each other, lesser powers, Iran, India, Turkey, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia are participating in the ‘game’ to further their own interests. According to the center for Defense Information Tohir’Idosh, the cofounder of the IMU, has received funding from “intelligence services and Islamic charities in Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.” The governments of all four have started different political, economic, cultural projects in the region to compete with each other. Kazakhstan itself has also tried to establish regional hegemony, as demonstrated through the Kazakh government’s US $100 million to Kyrgyzstan in earthquake aid in December 2006. Indo-Pakistani rivalry also plays a role.

Phases

            The great game has gone through three phases. The first phase began at the end of World War II and lasted until the end of the Cold War with fall of Soviet Union. The second phase began with the independence of the Central Asian nations until the color revolutions of the early 2000s open Georgia, Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan to democratization and foreign investment. The third and current phase began in May 2005 when the Central Asian governments first openly questioned whether they could trust the British and American governments and their distinct foreign policies emerged among the Central Asian states. Islamist terrorists in Uzbekistan attempted to overthrow the government, but were violently put down by Karimov administration.

Second Phase: Allying with East

Kyrgyzstan (1991-2005)

          Kyrgyz President Askar Akayev sought assistance from the United States in 2002 as domestic dissent increased, but received little as his administration failed to demonstrate progress in democratization or human rights. Akayev made Russian an official language, gave Russia a military base in Kant, and increased trade with Russia by 49% in 2002. The Kyrgyz people overthrew President Askar Akayev  in Tulip Revolution 2005. Kyrgyzstan has since shifted to balancing the interests of Russia and United States by allowing both of them to have air bases.

Third Phase:

Uzbekistan after May 2005

          While the western world condemned what it initially perceived as an excessive use of force by the Uzbek government I quelling uprising in Andijan, the Karimov administration received verbal and financial support from China, India , and Russia. The European Union imposed trade and travel sanctions against Uzbekistan on 3 October 2005, almost five months after the initial incident, Karimov ordered US troops to leave the Karshikhanabad airbase on 29 July 2005 within six month. On 21 December 2006 Russia gain the right to use the Navoi air base in Uzbekistan in the event of an emergency. China is actively trying to obtain a base in Uzbekistan. The third phase of ‘Great Game’ is going on and players are playing the game to secure their interests.