Highlight 27/2023 – Integration processes in Central Asia: Emerging opportunities and shifting collaboration dynamics
Jamshidjon Khayrullaev, 21 September 2023
Regional integration of Central Asian countries is primarily a process of convergence and interaction of national economies. It is based on natural processes of increasing interdependence of economic systems in order to eliminate barriers to mutual trade and investment interaction, and to put the economic entities of the states in equal conditions.
There are four fundamental requirements that must be met for the integration process to be effective:
– cooperation, often known as a partnership, is the process through which the pursuit of objectives by one country helps another country accomplish its goals;
– convergence, or the pursuit of convergence of fundamental economic indicators and the diminution (removal) of distinctions of an economic, political, or even social nature;
– harmonization, which entails the unification of many aspects of the legal sphere;
– coordination, which refers to widely construed teamwork to address a specific circumstance or accomplish goals. The connection between the three conditions listed above is coordination.[1]
To date, the implementation of these conditions for the countries of the region is quite possible, given that Central Asia is a group of countries with common characteristics, objective interests and established ties. These similarities and connections between the countries of the region allow them to be considered as a promising space in terms of integration.
Since 2016, the region has been experiencing an era of “new integration” aimed at fostering a climate of trust, good neighbourliness, and cooperation. Due to the new stage of bilateral collaboration between Central Asia countries, close regional cooperation is beginning to take shape in the region.
The emergence of a new political environment in the region demonstrates that the process of enhancing regional ties and uniting the peoples and states of Central Asia has achieved objective reality. The region has significantly high moral and ethical standards for good neighbourly relationships, which historically have more accurately reflected the degree of ties between these countries and peoples. The practical adaptation to the new realities and possible consolidation of approaches are achievable only on the basis of collective actions of states.
Openness in relations between the closest neighbours also contributes to the preservation of a pleasant environment, lays the groundwork for the region’s sustainable growth, and meets support in other countries around the world. Moreover, fostering cooperation and increasing political trust among Central Asian countries transforms it into a more independent, predictable and sustainable region.
Integration processes between Central Asian countries largely depend on the level of interstate relations and are conditioned by joint, coordinated actions. Important steps on the way to strengthening integration processes in the Central Asian region at this time would be to ensure full-fledged work on strengthening active bilateral and multilateral cooperation on political and economic issues, and the development of joint infrastructure projects designed to ensure prosperity of population of Central Asian countries.
[1] Ruszkowski J, Introduction to European studies, PWN Scientific Publishing House, 2007
Jamshidjon Khayrullaev, Highlight 27/2023 – Integration processes in Central Asia: Emerging opportunities and shifting collaboration dynamics, 21 September 2023, available at www.meig.ch
The views expressed in the MEIG Highlights are personal to the authors and neither reflect the positions of the MEIG Programme nor those of the University of Geneva.