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the competition between the abovementioned states to vie for influence over and
in the region, as well as to the conflicts that their different strategies may elicit in
the near future. In the Great Game narrative, the five Central Asian republics of
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are the board
on which the game is played.
Yet, the problem lies exactly in the fact that a metaphor, by definition, is a sim-
plified translation of reality into figurative images. In that sense, what does the
metaphor of a “game” suggest? First of all, it shows the game as an objective. Sec-
ond, it suggests that the game has rules that structure and regulate it. Third, these
rules are meant to ensure that the game has specific and agreed on participants.
The question to ask now is: do these conditions apply to the present international
political situation of Central Asia?Beyond AfghanistanIf the game has objectives, it usually also has prizes. The US’s strategy in the
region for many years has been that of linking Central Asia to Afghanistan to de-
velop a cordon sanitaire around the war-torn state. This would be reached via a
military presence as well as economic co-operation, de-militarisation of borders,
creation of multilateral formats, slow transition towards more effective, transpar-
ent and democratic governance and the development of humanitarian and cultural
co-operation.
Yet, this reading of Central Asia, often dubbed Greater Central Asia or the New
Silk Road, does not meet the objectives of Russia and China, which for security
reasons prefer to keep Afghanistan out of the regional framework. It is not by
chance that Afghanistan is not part of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty
Organisation (CSTO) as well as of the China-led Shanghai Co-operation Organi-
sation (SCO), an international group devoted to tackling extremism, separatism
and terrorism. Central Asian states, however, seem less interested in multilateral
formats, espically when it comes to Afghanistan relying more on bilateral co-
operation with the southern neighbour.
Specifically, Central Asian republics have rejected an overly regional agenda,
instead looking at ways to emphasise their differences and advance their own
perceived country-specific interests and objectives while also asserting their own
individual importance and strength. A recent Carnegie Endowment report titled
“Uncertain Continuity: Central Asia and the Trump Administration” discusses how
transforming Central Asian states into democratic, free-market economies knitted
together by regional economic integration will remain a great challenge. Further-Opinion & Analysis The new Great Game that is not, Filippo Costa Buranelli