Kazakhstan: Unfulfilled Promise

Kazakhstan's oil and gas reserves are amongst the largest in the world. At the onset of independence in the 1990s, Kazakhstan's leaders promised that the country's rich natural resources would soon bring economic prosperity, and it appeared that democracy was beginning to take hold in the newly independent state. A decade later, economic reform is mired in widespread corruption. A regime that flirted with democracy is now laying the foundations for family-based, authoritarian rule. This is an examination of the development of this ethnically diverse and strategically vital nation. It should be useful for policymakers, scholars and students. Subjects covered include: state building; democratic reform; ethnic conflict; US policy; post-Soviet transition; economic reform; and energy policy and development.