Mapping EU–Central Asia relations – Policy Papers just published

20.09.2018

In the framework of the SEnECA project, nine policy papers have been published which describe the current relations between the five Central Asian states Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan on the one hand, and the European Union on the supranational, but also on the national level, selected Asian states and world powers on the other hand. The mapping process was conducted by means of a literature review and focused on political and security relations (papers no. 1-3), economic and trade relations (papers no. 4-6), and culture, identity and civil society (papers no. 7-9). You can find the mapping policy papers on the project website.

The mapping policy papers are a first step in developing the SEnECA Policy Roadmap for future priorities for EU policy-making towards Central Asia. “These policy papers hold a wealth of hard-to-acquire information on the five Central Asian states’ role and position in the international system and vis-à-vis the European Union. They lay the foundation for the ensuing in-depth analysis of the EU-Central Asia relations, which will in turn lead to recommendations to be fed into the policy cycle of the review of the EU-Central Asia strategy”, explains Dr Böttger, Director of the Institut für Europäische Politik (IEP) who co-leads the project. For each of the phases (mapping – analysis – recommendations), SEnECA will publish a series of policy papers/briefs that outline the relevance of the region for specific policy fields of the EU and the interconnectedness of both regions.

The project “SEnECA – Strengthening and Energizing EU-Central Asia Relations” seeks to improve research cooperation and to strengthen capacities in research and policy advice in the EU and Central Asia. It comprises an international consortium with twelve partner organizations from the EU and all five Central Asian countries. The project is led by Prof. Dr Michael Kaeding, Professor for European politics at the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE), and Dr Katrin Böttger, Director of the Institut für Europäische Politik (IEP). The project is funded with around 1.5 million Euros under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme for a period of two years.