Central Asia Policy Brief No. 3, July 2012
By Anna Matveeva
Russian domestic agenda is influenced by the discourse on drugs and crime due to migrants from Central Asia and urges to contain them.
Moscow maintains a military presence in the region, but the purpose is uncertain as it refused to intervene in Kyrgyzstan in 2010 and is cagey of robust action to contain insecurity in Afghanistan.
A ‘Russia-First’ strategy may be in the making. The question is how security vacuum in Central Asia would be filled if Moscow is reluctant to act.
