Central Asia Central Asia, central region of Asia, extending from the Caspian Sea in the west to the border of western China in the east; it is bounded on the north by Russia and on the south by Iran, Afghanistan, and China. The region consists of five former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan. It is a region that once used to be called the ‘Centre of the World’.
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CONTENTS 2016– SP's Military Yearbook | 2017 | 44th Issue | 381
BUSINESS INDIAN DEFENCE
Given its abundant energy resources and by virtue of its geographical location, it has consistently been in the limelight. In the 19th century, it was the theatre of the classic great game which was played out between the Russian and the British empires. Later, it became a prized possession of the Soviet Union. The collapse of the Soviet Union led to the independence of the Central Asian states. The 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States brought further global attention to this region, reiterating its geostrategic relevance. Along with this, the presence of hydrocarbons has again made this region important. The key players in this region are the United States, Russia and China. Central Asia’s landscape can be divided into the vast grassy steppes of Kazakhstan in the north and the Aral Sea drainage basin in the south. About 60 per cent of the region consists of desert land, the principal deserts being the Karakum, occupying most of Turkmenistan, and the Kyzyl-Kum, covering much of western Uzbekistan. Most of the desert areas are unsuitable for agricultural use except along the margins of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya river systems, which wind their way north-westward through Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and eastern Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan after rising in mountain ranges to the south and east. Those two major rivers drain into the Aral Sea and provide most of the region’s water resources, though northern Kazakhstan is drained by rivers flowing north into Russia. On the east and south Central Asia is bounded by the western Altai and other high mountain ranges extending into Iran, Afghanistan, and western China. Central Asia experiences very dry climatic conditions, and inadequate precipitation has led to heavy dependence on the Syr Darya and Amu Darya for irrigation. The region as a whole experiences hot summers and cool winters, with much sunshine and very little precipitation. The scarcity of water has led to a very uneven population distribution, with most people living along the fertile banks of the rivers or in fertile mountain foothills in the south-east; comparatively few live in the vast arid expanses of central and western Kazakhstan and western Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. The Fergana Valley is the best suited land in Central Asia for hosting a large population. Soviet leader Josef Stalin split the valley up between the Soviet republics that would become the countries of Central Asia to ensure the region remained divided, however, Uzbekistan controls most of the basin itself; Tajikistan controls the most accessible entrance to the valley from the west; and Kyrgyzstan controls the high ground around the val-
ASIAN WHO’S WHO
Abbreviations at the end of the yearbook
C
entral and South Asia together account for about one-quarter of the world’s population. Both the regions have countries that are mostly underdeveloped and poor. Central Asia lies at the crossroad of Europe and Asia, and together with South Asia constitutes one of the most unstable regions of the 21st century. It encompasses the world’s largest landmass (39,95,800 sq km) and has vast natural resources, including significant reserves of oil and gas. Historically, it has acted as a crossroad for the movement of people, goods and ideas between Europe, West Asia, South Asia and East Asia. On the other hand, South Asia is strategically important because it lies astride the main sea routes from West Asia to the Far East. Further India’s economic growth and dynamism had made South Asia an attractive destination for foreign investment. India’s economy since its slowdown in 2012 has now picked up and India expects its economy to grow at 7-7.5 per cent in the fiscal year to March 2017. The Economic Survey, the basis for the Finance Minister’s Annual Budget in February 2016, has projected India to grow 8 per cent in the next couple of years. India has overtaken China as the fastest growing major economy in the world, expanding to 7.3 per cent and cementing its position as one of the sole bright spots in a flailing global economy. Economic growth is now expected to hit the high of 7.6 per cent in 2016, according to Delhi’s Central Statistics Office, higher than the 7.2 per cent reached in 2014. However the government’s demonetisation move on November 8, 2016, could dampen the GDP growth this year and next year. The exact impact has still to be worked out. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects India to grow at 6.6 per cent for the current year and 7.2 per cent next year. The Indian Government on June 20, 2016, announced, what it termed, a “radical liberalisation” of the foreign direct investment (FDI) regime by easing norms for a host of important sectors including defence, civil aviation and pharmaceuticals, opening them up for complete foreign ownership.
REGIONAL BALANCE
Central & South Asia
TECHNOLOGY
CONCEPTS & PERSPECTIVES
WEAPONS EQUIPMENT VEHICLES
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