DKU Talks «The eternal promise of regionalism in Central Asia»
The Kazakh-German University is pleased to invite all to the next DKU Talks with Dr. Filippo Costa Buranelli (University of St. Andrews, UK) on topic «The eternal promise of regionalism in Central Asia». The format of the meeting involves a discussion with all participants after the presentation of the main report.
Dr. Filippo Costa Buranelli is Lecturer in International Relations at the University of St Andrews, UK. He got his MSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science and his PhD from King’s College London. His interests are International Relations theory, international history, Eurasian politics and regionalism. He is Fellow at the Higher Education Academy, and he is the convener of the Working Group on Regional International Societies at the International Studies Association. His research has been published in Millennium: Journal of International Studies, Journal of Eurasian Studies, International Politics, Geopolitics, and Global Discourse, and he has authored a number of book chapters on International Relations theory and Central Asian politics. His co-authored work on the history and evolution of regionalism is forthcoming in the Oxford Research Encyclopaedia of International Studies, published by Oxford University Press. He often offers commentaries and analyses on Central Asian politics to international media outlets.
Summary
That Central Asia is a region seems to be an undisputed fact, as is the fact that the Central Asian states can and should integrate more politically, economically, and culturally. Regionalism, either virtual or existent, has been one of the most debated themes in Central Asian international relations, especially since Uzbekistan has begun injecting new lymph into regional diplomacy and cooperation. However, is this truly new? And what existing theories of regionalism can tell us about Central Asian multilateralism? This research intends to introduce the notions of «order' and «pragmatic coexistence/ into the Central Asian diplomatic jargon, demonstrating how the five Central Asian republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan have created a regional order structured around the institutions of sovereignty, diplomacy, international law, and great power management. The argument advanced is that the adoption of such institutions, and their local interpretation, have significantly contributed to regional order and the avoidance of inter-state open conflict in Central Asia, without necessarily leading to the formation of an integrated region or conforming to Eurocentric theories of regionalism. In other words, this research considers Central Asia not as a «region' but as an «international society', defined as the condition when a group of states, conscious of certain common interests and common values, conceive themselves to be bound by a common set of rules in their relations with one another, and share in the working of common institutions. To do so, the research employs a methodology aimed at identifying elements of state socialisation in the words and practices of state-representatives and diplomats. The research relies on a constructivist epistemology to disclose how common understandings and meanings of «appropriate diplomatic conduct' in the region are agreed upon by regional diplomatic agents. This work draws on extensive fieldwork and archival research in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan in the 2013−2019 period.
The presentation will be in English.
DKU Talks is financed by DAAD from funds offered by the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
If you have any questions, please contact the project assistant:
Frau Aisulu Beken
beken.aisulu@dku.kz
Tel.: 355−05−51 (ext. *233)
Mob.: +7 707 625 42 55