‘Eurasia’ is a term that covers  the former Soviet republics. This is a conflict-ridden area of major importance, not least as regards energy supplies.

The Russian Federation is the dominant country in this region, which includes the Central Asian republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as the trans-Caucasian republics of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. After the break-up of the Soviet Union, many conflicts have erupted in this area: Abkhazia and South Ossetia battling for independence from Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan seeking control over Nagorno-Karabakh – and Russia and Ukraine in conflict over the Crimean peninsula.

Russia’s foreign policy is a central theme in NUPI’s research on Russia and Eurasia. Also important are energy and economic issues, given Russia’s standing as a major producer of oil and gas. Other priority research fields are ethnicity, nation-building, nationalism and national identity, as well as democracy and human rights.

Source: Store Norske Leksikon and NUPI.