Overview

This book explores how Kazakhstan has navigated its identity and geopolitical relationships since the January 2022 protests and the Russian-Ukrainian crisis. What began as a study of Soviet legacy in Kazakhstan shifted focus when major events in 2022 altered the country's internal politics and regional standing. We trace Kazakhstan's complex history with Russia from the incorporation of Kazakh nomadic territories into the Russian Empire through the Soviet era to today's complex relationship. The Soviet policies of collectivization and sedentarization dramatically transformed traditional Kazakh society, with devastating consequences like the Asharshylyk famine that continue to shape national memory and identity. The book examines Kazakhstan's development under Presidents Nazarbayev and Tokayev, looking at how their ""social contract"" prioritized economic growth and stability over political freedoms. We provide a detailed look at the January 2022 protests, their aftermath, and Tokayev's subsequent reform agenda aimed at political modernization. In the shadow of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, we show how Kazakhstan walks a diplomatic tightrope—maintaining necessary ties with Russia while avoiding Western sanctions and developing new partnerships, especially with Turkic states. Using postcolonial theory, we analyze how historical power dynamics continue to influence Kazakhstan's search for identity and place in the world. Through five chapters, we offer readers a window into Kazakhstan's evolving sense of self, its changing relationships with global powers, and the potential for Pan-Turkism to provide a complementary alliance to Russian-dominated regional frameworks.

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9789819687374

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Nygmet Ibadildin is an Assistant Professor at KIMEP University with a rich background in both academia and journalism. Before his academic career, he worked as editor-in-chief at Energy of Kazakhstan magazine and the newspaper Vremya Po. With a PhD from Finland's University of Tampere, his research examines how natural resources shape politics, how institutions develop after the Soviet collapse, and how post-Soviet states navigate their complex political landscapes. Dinara Pisareva is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Politics and International Relations at Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan. She completed her PhD at the Australian National University, focusing on protests and authoritarian politics in non-democracies. Her work explores how citizens in authoritarian states engage with politics, particularly during moments of change. Currently, she's researching how the Kazakh government framed the January 2022 events and how this affected public support for law enforcement. Dinara is also working on international projects studying trust in science and attitudes toward vaccination. Nurmakhan Tastaibek is completing his graduate studies in Political Science and International Relations at Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan. Nurmakhan Tastaibek holds an MA in Political Science and International Relations from Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan. His research interests include authoritarian governance, public opinion, and state-society relations in Central Asia. He is co-author of the book chapter “Foreign Terrorists and Kyrgyz Jazzmen: Framing the January 2022 Unrest in Kazakhstan,” which analyzes how Kazakhstani authorities framed the unrest through narratives of foreign interference. He is currently working on two projects: a survey experiment examining the effects of official narratives about the January 2022 events, and a qualitative study using constructivist grounded theory to explore attitudes toward LGBTQI+ individuals in Kazakhstan.

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