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About the Central Asia Region
Land Area and PopulationThe Central Asia region mainly consists of the five Central Asian republics - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The region is located in the center of the Eurasian continent. It is bordered on the north by the Russian Federation, on the south by Iran and Afghanistan, and on the east by the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Mongolia lies on the upper portion of the PRC; Azerbaijan, a member of the Caucasus, lies on the western side of the region near Turkmenistan. In too many ways, the Central Asia region is not an easy territory. Great ideas may have connected Eastern and Western civilizations by way of the Silk Road, which is actually a network of routes rather than a single byway, but the variegated terrain of Central Asia is as physically daunting as its history is legendary. From east to west, the region stretches nearly 4,500 kilometers and occupies a land area about the size of Europe, exclusive of the former Soviet Union.The combined population of the Central Asia region and the other nearby participating countries of the Program is more than 80 million. The total area is sparsely settled with a population density of about 13 inhabitants per square kilometer. 
RemotenessThe salient geographic characteristic of the region is its remoteness. The countries in the region including the other participating countries are all landlocked. Uzbekistan is a double landlocked country. The capital of Xinjiang, Urumqi, is farther from a seaport than any other large city in the world. International trade in the region thus involves shipment of goods over long distances through neighboring countries. Landscape and Climate
The terrain of the region ranges from 154 meters below sea level, the second lowest point on earth, in Turpan basin to mountain peaks as high as 7,400 in Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan. The region is generally mountainous. The Kyrgyz Republic is predominantly mountainous and dominated by the Tien Shan range. Into this mountain range run the dry grass of Kazakhstan. Ninety percent of Tajikistan is mountainous, largely covered by Trans-Alay range in the north and the Pamirs in the southeast. Travels on the mountains and borders are limited to only a few corridors and passes. Within Central Asia lies one of the most inhospitable deserts in the world, the Takliman desert. There are little natural resources in the area including vegetation and wildlife. Local people call it "the Land of Death" or the "the Land of the Irrevocable Death." Turkmenistan is 80 percent desert, which is part of the great Garagum desert. The region's terrain is generally harsh and poses substantial barriers to transportation and communication. The climate in the region is generally dry. Weather varies from arid to semi-arid in desert and steppe areas, respectively. The region usually has hot summers and mild to cold winters. BordersBetween 1924 and 1936, the authorities of Moscow determined the borders of the Central Asian republics based on political and economic considerations. To some extent, these boundaries were based on linguistically distinct population. With few exceptions, these internationally recognized borders do not reflect the contours of natural geographic, ethnographic or economic divisions. The agricultural center of the region, the fertile Ferghana valley, is shared by Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Also, high and almost impassable mountains separate the Osh region of the Kyrgyz Republic and the Leninabad region of Tajikistan from their respective capitals. Land transportation means created during the Soviet period including highways and railroads defy the national boundaries in the region. An example of this is the major highway between Tashkent and Samarkand in Uzbekistan that passes through Kazakhstan. Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan border the Caspian Sea while Kazakhstan includes the southern portion of the Aral Sea with a 420 km shoreline.
Economy
Farming is the region's main industry. It occurs in line with the climactic and natural conditions of the area. For most of the Central Asian republics, cotton is one of their main products. These countries, including Krygyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan are some of the top world's producers of cotton. Livestock and grain industries are important for a number of the Central Asian republics. Also the primary manufacturing industry for several of these republics is well developed. As a whole, the Central Asia region has abundant supply of mineral resources that include petroleum, natural gas, and rare metals. Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan including Azerbaijan are the three main oil and gas exporters in the region and nearby countries. Both Xinjiang, PRC and Mongolia depend on agriculture as their main industry. Xinjiang is a sparsely populated area but is rich in natural resources. With the use of oasis irrigation, Xinjiang has increased the production of agriculture and animal husbandry. It has become the largest commodity cotton production base and second largest animal husbandry production base in the PRC as well as the biggest beet-sugar, hop and ketsup base in north China. In the 1990s as part of establishing a modern industrial system, Xinjiang has become a significant crude oil extracting base and petrochemical base of the PRC. Related Documents
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