European Union Governance in Central Asia: A Sectoral Approach

The edited volume attempts to critically approach EU-Central Asian relations, asking whether – when adopting a more sectoral governance approach – the EU’s transformative power vis-à-vis the region is greater than initially argued and if so, under what conditions it flourishes most. It assesses whether, through adopting a sectoral approach to the area of, development, infrastructure, water management, security, climate change, energy, trade, health, education, or any other element defining EU-Central Asian relations, the European Union is able to (co-)shape this geopolitically strategic region. If so, what drives the EU’s ability to do so; if not, what mitigates its (potential) influence? This book contributes to the scholarship on the EU’s external governance both empirically and theoretically.

Table of Contents:
Introduction: The European Union’s Governance in Central Asia – A Sectoral Approach JULIA K. MEYER, MAREK NEUMAN AND AGHA BAYRAMOV PART I European Union Governance in Central Asia: A Conceptual Account 1 EU Foreign Policy and How Contested Spaces Become Regions SENKA NEUMAN STANIVUKOVIĆ AND MAREK NEUMAN 2 Designing, Mapping, and Reshaping Borders: European Neighbourhood Policy and Central Asia MUSTAFA ALI SEZAL 3 The EU’s Role as a Partner in Region-Building in Central Asia IKBOLJON QORABOYEV PART II European Union Governance in Central Asia: An Empirical Account of Energy and Security Politics 4 Geopolitical Constraints in the EU’s Revised Strategy towards Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan AGHA BAYRAMOV AND FABIO INDEO 5 The EU’s Green Normative Power in Central Asia: The Case of the Aral Sea and Water Management Policies in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan ANA-MARIA ANGHELESCU AND IOAN-DAVID ONEL 6 The European Union’s Role in Addressing Environmental Disputes in Central Asia: Evaluating the Effectiveness of a “Reluctant 3rd Party” ALEXANDRU BALAS 7 Turning Bridges into Walls: The EU and Border Management in Central Asia VIKTORIA AKCHURINA AND VINCENT DELLA SALA PART III European Union Governance in Central Asia: An Empirical Account of Sectoral Politics 8 The Promotion of EU Principles and Values through Facebook Diplomacy in the Countries of Central Asia BORNA ZGURIĆ , ĐANA LUŠA AND LIDIJA KOS-STANIŠIĆ 9 EU Aid and Good Governance in Central Asia TAALAIGUL USONOVA AND AILUNA SHAMURZAEVA 10 The European Union as a Rule of Law Promoter in Central Asia: Some Lessons Learned from e-Justice Implementation in Kyrgyzstan ALIIA MARALBAEVA 11 Various Understandings of Rule of Law: Conceptualization of an Actor-Centric Perspective NARGIZA KILICHOVA 12 The Role of Foreign Actors in the Modernization of Higher Education in Uzbekistan ALEX KROUGLOV Conclusion: EU-Central Asia Relations – Adapting to New Realities on the Ground AGHA BAYRAMOV AND MAREK NEUMAN