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The EU and Central Asia: between geopolitics and transnational challenges

12 November 2014

Central Asia stands at the intersection of regional developments that include the military drawdown in Afghanistan; reverberations of the Ukrainian crisis; the roll-out of the Eurasian Economic Union and Russia’s reinvigorated assertiveness; and China's increasing presence and influence. Individual Central Asian countries also face significant challenges that call for targeted assistance. These range from domestic political transition to rising Islamic extremism, while porous borders and tensions related to the management of unequal distribution of water exacerbate the potential for conflict. This workshop provided a platform to discuss the EU’s collective interests in Central Asia and its potential contribution(s) to help address some of the challenges outlined above.