The Economist: Turkey and Central Asia are riding together again

Source:The Economist Date:29Sep2024

The Turkic world bridges Europe and Asia, covering Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. It spills into Russia, with its many Turkic minorities, and China, home to 12m Uyghurs. The idea of a common Turkic identity, a bogeyman for the Soviets and for today’s Russia and China, is flourishing. The Nomad Games are one sign.

Another is the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS), which has evolved from a talking-shop for autocrats into a vehicle for co-operation in areas ranging from education to foreign policy. The OTS helps counterbalance other regional groupings dominated by Russia. “These countries are trying to reposition themselves and to keep Russia at bay,” says Nargis Kassenova of Harvard University.