China and Central Asia in the Post-Soviet Era: A Bilateral Approach

This manuscript examines Sino-Middle Eastern relations on a bilateral level. It highlights the depth of China’s involvement in Central Asia with each country on a five dimensional approach: security cooperation, energy security, trade relations, political relations, and cultural relations. Regarding each of these criteria, Central Asia enjoys a strategic significance to China’s national security, vital interests, territorial integrity, sovereignty, regime survival, and economic prosperity. China has been an integral part of the political developments on the Central Asian political scene for over the past two millennia. Their bilateral ties grew steadily since the independence of Central Asian republics in 1992, culminating into strategic partnership two decades later. China and its partners in the region have embarked on the construction of the most ambitious gas pipelines network, joint ventures in oil upstreaming and downstreaming, mammoth highway and railroad projects, trade zones, construction projects, and above all, strategic security coordination in reference to unified and an integrated response to regional security threats. Both sides are also engaged in a process of revival of the Silk Road in terms of its cultural diversity and trade relations. Sino-Central Asian volume of trade reached $50 billion heading steadily toward $100 in the coming five years.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1: China and Central Asia: An Overview Chapter 2: Multilateralism: A Five Dimensional Approach Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Rivalry, Competition, and Accommodation: A Tridimensional Approach Chapter 4: China and Afghanistan Chapter 5: China and Kazakhstan Chapter 6: China and Kyrgyzstan Chapter 7: China and Tajikistan Chapter 8: China and Turkmenistan Chapter 9: Uzbekistan and China Chapter 10: Prospects and Conclusions

About the Author :
Muhamad S. Olimat is an associate professor of international relations and Middle East studies at the Institute for Civil and International Security at Khalifa University for Science, Technology, and Research.

Review :
This is a much needed treatise on China's involvement in Central Asia that fortunately, and unlike most other works on the region, also includes Afghanistan. The author correctly evaluates Afghanistan as 'the greatest missing link and a major hurdle in the region's development' and its security and stability. I highly recommend this book to anybody interested in global politics and the rise of China as a global power that will pit it against other major players in Central Asia such as Russia and the United States. Muhamad Olimat’s new book, China and Central Asia in the Post-Soviet Era, is a natural complement to his earlier works on China’s relations with North Africa and the Middle East. Indeed, the interconnectedness of these regions has been an important topic for centuries, and bears particular importance now in economic, geopolitical, and security related terms. I highly recommend this book for those seeking a useful survey of interactions between key players in recent decades, which also places these interactions in a historical context