This academic module features teaching notes by Jeffrey Mankoff, author of the Council Special Report Eurasian Energy Security, along with additional resources to supplement the text. In this report, Dr. Mankoff examines Russia's rise as an energy power and suggests that Europe can increase its energy security by working with--not against--Russia going forward.

A new regime in Turkmenistan has energy analysts and human rights activists hopeful of better days ahead for this post-Soviet state.

The death of Turkmenistan’s eccentric president ends a brutal dictatorship. It also raises questions about the control of Turkmenistan’s massive natural gas reserves and Eurasian energy security.

Energy and security issues topped the agenda during Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev's trip to Washington. Yet human rights advocates were pressing the White House to place more emphasis on Kazakhstan's democracy deficit.

Throughout the 1990s, Central Asia's Fergana Valley emerged as a hotbed of Islamic fundamentalism. A clash in the Fergana city of Andijan last year, variously described as a "massacre" or a "counterterrorist operation," caused a serious break in Uzbek-U.S. ties. Now, a new video has some questioning the facts of that event.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization, celebrating its five-year anniversary summit, has blossomed into a full-fledged security alliance, as well as a foil to U.S. influence in Central Asia.

The Kyrgyz government has announced it may evict U.S. forces from a leased airbase there. A pullout would weaken the U.S. presence in Central Asia at a time when Chinese and Russian influence is rising.

Evan A. Feigenbaum states, "... unless U.S. policymakers adapt to the contours of a more integrated Asia, and soon, they will miss opportunities in every part of the region over time - and find the United States less relevant to Asia's future."

Evan A. Feigenbaum authors a report from the Central Asia Study Group and the Project 2049 Institute that calls on American and Central Asian leaders to rise to the challenges and opportunities in the region. The report proposes an action agenda on economics, energy, governance, security, social development, and regional cooperation, and places particular emphasis on the importance of reconnecting Central Asian countries to the global economy.

Blaine D. Holt argues that rebuilding Kyrgyzstan's crumbling infrastructure with U.S. aid and manpower will lead to the development of programs and institutions from which a democracy can evolve.

Walter Russell Mead says the violence in Kyrgyzstan is shaping up to be "a typical modern horror story."

A profile of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which comprises China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

A newly obtained video of a May 2005 massacre of civilians in the Uzbek city of Andijan casts new light on an event that led to a marked decrease in U.S. influence in the region.

This report looks at Russia's rise as an energy power, analyzing its control of supplies and delivery systems and its investments in energy infrastructure across Europe, as well as questions about the potential of its production, recognizing that European dependence on Russian energy will be a reality well into the future and that Europe can increase its energy security only by working with--not against--Russia.