How about this: instead of writing off Rakhat Aliyev’s arrest in Austria on racketeering charges (including the not-oft repeated correlation with the sale of Nurbank, in which Aliyev had a majority stake, to Austrian banks Raiffeisen Bank and Bank Austria) as a simple power struggle or punishment for claiming his status as heir to Uncle Nazzy, we connect Aliyev’s arrest to his failed attempts to gain Kazakhstan the OSCE chair —catalogued in part here by Nathan—and Aliyev’s connection to the murder of Altynbek Sarsenbaiuly?
Oh hell, I don’t know. Aliyev has enough black marks on his record you don’t need to invent an international conspiracy, however fun it may be. Unfortunately, Aliyev is not alone in Central Asian politics, which can quite properly be seen in large degree as a gaggle of nepotistic, thoroughly for-sale thugs. Hrm. Kind of like here.
This post was written by...
Joshua Foust – author of 1801 posts on Registan.net.
Joshua Foust is a Fellow at the American Security Project and the author of Afghanistan Journal: Selections from Registan.net. His research focuses primarily on Central and South Asia. Joshua is a correspondent for The Atlantic and a columnist for PBS Need to Know. Joshua appears regularly on the BBC World News, Aljazeera, and international public radio. Joshua is also a regular contributor to Foreign Policy’s AfPak Channel, and his writing has appeared in the New York Times, Reuters, and the Christian Science Monitor. Follow him on twitter: @joshuafoust
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You guys have great site here.One that can possibly promote understanding. Which, by the way is the only solution to this mess in which we are all currently involved. unfortunately, I am reminded of an old adage, with regard to academics. “Academic fights are so fierce because so little is at stake.” This site only seems to be for academics and chosen reporters articles. I myself was once mainly an academic with decent credentials, but Katrina and Afghanistan caused me to devote my skills elsewhere for the last two years plus.I should hope you would see the wisdom in allowing people or folks who you may not agree with post comments in the effort of greater understanding, because understanding and knowledge is what will save us all, not violence or force of arms, nor someone’s interpretaion thereof.
Lee, we do have plenty of readers in academia, but the most active folks on the site are not academics themselves. I have set a high standard for discussion though, and I have a strong preference for clarity and accuracy in debate. I could care less if someone disagrees with authors who write here, but I do care if people are rude or just trolling.
I reiterate, I welcome any and all viewpoints here, especially when they can be backed up. And I also have a standing offer that anyone who would like to contribute may do so by contacting me.