Kazakhstan : power and the elite / Sally N. Cummings.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cummings, Sally N.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Kazakhstan--Politics and government--1991-.

Kazakhstan.

Politics and government.

Physical Description:

vi, 202 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : I.B. Tauris ; New York : Distributed in the US by Palgrave Macmillan, 2005.

Summary:

Kazakhstan is the largest state in Central Asia. Rich in oil, gas and other natural resources and sandwiched between China and Russia it occupies a key geopolitical position, the importance of which was further heightened following the attacks of 9/11 and subsequent wars in the wider Middle East. But Kazakhstan was born by default, gaining independence only reluctantly as the Soviet Union collapsed. Its political elite, facing complex tasks of state-building, also lacked a monoethnic base on which to build its legitimacy. Based on original material and extensive interviews in the capital and three of the country's regions, the book places the elite in the country's broader institutional and historical context, analysing their identity, behaviour and how they gained and secured power in the early independence years. Kazakhstan: Power and the Elite is essential reading for all those interested in the history, politics and international relations of this fascinating country.

Contents:

1 The Context of Transition, 1991-2001 14

2 Elites, Careers and Institutions 38

3 Social Background 58

4 Elite Legitimation 77

5 Techniques of Power Maintenance 98

6 The Environment and Elite Behaviour 117.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [181]-198) and index.

ISBN:

1860648541

OCLC:

50404136

Publisher Number:

9781860648540