Azerbaijan, Baku, Nov. 17 / Trend V.Zhavoronkova /
Greater cooperation among Central Asian countries could be useful in combating the threat of terrorism in the region, Acting Director of International Security Studies at Yale University Jeffrey Mankoff told Trend .
Recently the Taliban's presence in the northern Afghanistan has increased. Northern Afghanistan borders Central Asia, namely Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. Afghan provinces such as Kunduz and Balkh are today subjected to violence by the Taliban. A large number of attacks occur against civilian and governmental facilities.
Observers say instability in neighboring Afghanistan could affect Central Asia.
The threat of increased terrorist activity in Central Asia is real, he said, adding that it may not be as severe as regional governments sometimes believe.
"More strengthened regional cooperation in Central Asia could be useful to combat the threat of terrorism in the region," Mankoff wrote Trend in an e-mail.
Countries in the region badly distrust one another, he added.
"I do not see them cooperating actively, in part because they (apart from Uzbekistan) do not see the potential threat as being serious enough to put aside other considerations," the expert said.
The reality of the threat, in his opinion, relates largely to the instability in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
With the Pakistani army's increased push against militants, some Uzbek and other Central Asian fighters who fled to Pakistan in the early 2000s are being uprooted and may eventually return to Central Asia, the expert said.
He added that the countries most at risk are Kyrgyzstan because of its weakness and location, and Uzbekistan, which is the main target of Uzbek militants in Pakistan.
Third-party powers fighting for influence in Central Asia could also be useful in combating the threat of terrorism.
"To some extent, the U.S., Russia and China all are ready to assist Central Asia in countering the threat of terror," he said.
According to the expert, the U.S. is concerned about the mess in Afghanistan and Pakistan spreading, while Russia is worrying about extremism spreading toward its borders. Meanwhile, China is anxious about terrorism's impact on Xinjiang.
The type and degree of help the major powers are willing to offer varies, of course, he said.
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