USE. Story

Made by student gr.POIM-116

Smyslov S.V.

Presentation:

Slide 1.

Southeast Asia during the Cold War.

Smyslov S.V. group POIM-116.

Slide 2.

Far East and Southeast Asia.

International relations of the era of the Yalta-Potsdam system represent a very complex picture of the confrontation between the leading subjects of world politics in a vast geopolitical space. Southeast Asia and the Far East were an integral part of this space, where the interests of the United States of America, the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union clashed.

Slide 3.

War in Korea.

The result of the contradictions was the war on the Korean Peninsula

The parties to the conflict were:

North Korea (DPRK) with the support of the USSR (advisers, military equipment, finance) and China (personnel at the final stage up to 600,000 thousand people).

South Korea (RK) US support (military equipment, finance, regular units of the US Army, under the auspices of the UN).

In 1953, after the death of Stalin and the coming to power in the United States of a new administration, the parties conclude a truce and withdraw troops, the line of demarcation is the 38th parallel. The conflict is frozen.

slide 4.

Conference in San Francisco.

During the Korean War in San Francisco (September 1951), a peace conference was organized, which was supposed to consolidate the results of the Second World War in the Far East, the purpose of which was to conclude peace treaties. Where Japan was recognized as the aggressor and lost all its conquered territories. At the same time, even before the start of the conference, the United States weakened the position of the countries of the communist camp.

The delegations of the PRC and the DPRK were not invited to the meeting, but there were 52 countries in total. The version of the peace treaty proposed by Moscow was not even considered at the conference, which emphasized a certain isolation of the USSR in making decisions on the fate of the Asia-Pacific region. The Anglo-American version of the agreement was adopted as a basis.

slide 5

Creation of military blocks at the head of the USA in Asia.

Zealand insisted on signing with the United States in San Francisco the so-called

Pacific Pact, which formalized a military alliance called ANZUS (USA, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea. . The agreement provided for consultations in the event of a threat

attacks and joint military operations in the event of an attack on the territory, ships and aircraft of one of the participants in the Pacific Ocean.

In 1954 creation of the SEATO block (USA, Great Britain, France, Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, Pakistan and Thailand).

Thus, the military-political confrontation was

extended to the APR.

The Cold War acquired a global character, with all its regional features.

slide 6

US War in Vietnam (1964-1975).

This war became one of the most important events of the Cold War period. Its course and results largely predetermined the further development of events throughout Southeast Asia. In total, hostilities lasted over 10 years. Direct US military intervention in the affairs of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam continued for more than eight years.

The reason was the armed incident in the Gulf of Tonkin. On August 2, 1964, the US Navy destroyer Maddox, patrolling the Gulf of Tonkin, approached the coast of North Vietnam and was allegedly attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats. In response, President Lyndon Johnson ordered the US Air Force to strike at the military offshore facilities in North Vietnam.

Slide 7.

US war in Vietnam

On August 5, 1964, US aviation began an "air war" against the DRV and shelled its territory with ships of the 7th Fleet.

On August 6-7, the US Congress adopted a joint resolution (the so-called "Tonkin Resolution") that authorized these actions and granted President Johnson the right to use US military forces in Southeast Asia.

On February 7, 1965, American aviation launched Operation Flaming Dart ("Flaming Spear") - the first among the operations to destroy the military and industrial facilities of North Vietnam.

On March 2, 1965, the systematic bombing of North Vietnam began as part of Operation Rolling Thunder.

One of the features of the Vietnam War, which distinguishes it from other local wars, is the widespread use of chemical weapons by the US Army against units of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (NLF). The Americans, using chemicals, namely the defoliant "Agent Orange", destroyed the foliage in the jungle to identify partisan detachments, and with napalm - the manpower of their enemy. As a result, Vietnam suffered from the use of chemical weapons more than any other country in the world.

slide 8.

Participation in the war of the United States and its satellites.

In March 1965, 3,500 marines were landed in Da Nang, and in February 1968, US troops in Vietnam already numbered 543,000 people and a large number of military equipment, which accounted for 30% of the combat strength of the US Army, 30% of army aviation helicopters, about 40% tactical aircraft, almost 13% of attack aircraft carriers and 66% of marines. After the conference in Honolulu in February 1966, the heads of the US allies in the SEATO bloc sent troops to South Vietnam: South Korea - 49 thousand people, Thailand - 13.5 thousand, Australia - 8 thousand, the Philippines - 2 thousand and New Zealand - 350 people.

slide 9.

Participation of the USSR and China.

The USSR and China took the side of North Vietnam, providing it with extensive economic, technical and military assistance. By 1965 alone, the DRV received 340 million rubles from the Soviet Union free of charge or in the form of loans. Weapons, ammunition and other materiel were supplied to the VNA. Soviet military specialists helped VNA soldiers to master military equipment.

slide 10.

Cessation of hostilities.

By the end of the 1960s. the situation for the United States in East Asia approached a fundamentally important milestone, the inability not only to win the war against the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV), which received a lot of assistance from the USSR and China, but also to maintain its presence in southern Vietnam became obvious. At the end of 1968, negotiations began in Paris between the delegations of the USA and the DRV, on the one hand, and the delegations of the DRV and the Popular Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam, on the other, on the cessation of hostilities [see: A documentary history... 1980,143].

Taking into account the expansion of the positions of the communists and the left forces close to them in Laos and Cambodia, which were under the influence of the DRV, as well as the weakening of support for Washington's regional policy by its allies, this meant the failure of the American strategy in Southeast Asia with the prospect of the US withdrawing from Indochina.

Slide 11.

US withdrawal from the war.

China's relations with the United States were hostile on all fronts, and one of the most bitter was the confrontation in Indochina. However, the main thing was that Washington and Beijing realized the need for parallel action to resolve the crisis in international relations in East Asia.

The situation of the crisis of international relations in East Asia led to a change in the doctrinal foundations of the entire foreign policy of the United States. The expression of a new assessment of the strategic situation in the world, the ability of the United States to maintain its influence was the so-called Nixon Doctrine, the main points of which were announced in the President's speech on the island of Guam on July 25, 1969.

chesky philosophy. Not the whole world, but only the developed zones of the capitalist system were declared vital - for the sake of predominance in them, the United States was ready to fight. A huge mass of developing countries, in essence, was declared only a zone of desirable American domination” [Utkin, 2003,217-218].

The change in the foreign policy doctrine of the United States immediately led to changes in international relations in East Asia, which resulted in the transition of the Vietnam War to a qualitatively new stage. In Washington, the principle of "Vietnamization" of the war was proclaimed, which contributed to the beginning of the negotiation process between the warring parties [see: LaFeber, 1991,262].

slide 12.

results of the Vietnam War.

The only way to overcome the crisis of international relations in the region was the revision of foreign policy concepts by the main subjects of international relations. It was necessary to overcome the fundamental principle of bipolarity, on which all the foreign policy steps of this or that state, the Cold War period, were based.

As a result of the Paris Agreements, Washington's strategic position in Southeast Asia has deteriorated significantly. It became clear that a direct US presence in the region was no longer possible. Nevertheless, the final withdrawal of the United States from the region did not occur. First, their positions were strong in Korea and Taiwan, as well as in the Pacific. In addition, one should not forget that the US presence in Asia spread through military blocs, even with the loss of South Vietnam, the states retained influence in the region.

Finally, another important factor that influenced the balance of power in East Asia after the Paris Accords was the US-Chinese rapprochement, which allowed both sides to strengthen their position in the region, plus China's territorial location made it a key player in determining the foreign policy of the states of this region.

With the unification of Vietnam, the USSR also strengthened its influence in this part of the world (ideological, military, economic)

Slide 13.

The principle of bipolarity, which was the basis of international relations after World War II, has been violated. In East Asia, a so-called strategic triangle has developed: the USA - China - the USSR. Each of these states had a certain political, economic and military weight, which, however, did not allow one or another state to dominate in the region.

slide 14.

Bibliography:

1. History of foreign policy of the USSR, 1986; Kadymov, 1965

2. http://vietnamnews.ru/chemical

3. http://www.easttime.ru/analytics/dalnii-vostok/aziatskoe-nato

If we consider the chronological stages of the Cold War, then there is a traditional and most common division:

the initial phase of the confrontation (1946-1953). At this stage, the confrontation takes shape almost officially (from Churchill's Fulton speech in 1946), an active struggle for spheres of influence begins, first in Europe (Central, Eastern and Southern), and then in other regions of the world, from Iran to Korea. The military parity of forces is becoming obvious, taking into account the presence of both the United States and the USSR of atomic weapons, military-political blocs (NATO and the Warsaw Pact) appear that support each superpower. The first clash of opposing camps at the "test site" of third countries - the Korean War;

acute stage of confrontation (1953-1962). This stage began with a temporary weakening of the confrontation - after the death of Stalin and criticism of the cult of his personality by Khrushchev, who came to power in the USSR, there were opportunities for a constructive dialogue. However, at the same time, the parties increased their geopolitical activity, which is especially obvious for the USSR, which stopped any attempts by the allied countries to leave the socialist camp. In combination with the ongoing arms race, this brought the world to the brink of open war between nuclear powers - the Caribbean Crisis of 1962, when, due to the deployment of Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba, a war with the use of atomic weapons almost started between the USSR and the USA;

the so-called "détente" (1962-1979), the period of the Cold War, when a number of objective factors demonstrated to both sides the danger of increasing tension. First, after 1962 it became obvious that an atomic war, in which, most likely, there would be no winners, was more than real. Secondly, the psychological fatigue of the participants in the Cold War and the rest of the world from constant tension made itself felt and demanded a respite. Thirdly, the arms race also began to have an effect - the USSR was experiencing more and more obvious systemic economic problems, trying to keep up with its rival in building up its military potential. In this regard, the United States had difficulties as with the main allies, who were increasingly striving for peaceful development, in addition, the oil crisis was raging, in which the normalization of relations with the USSR, one of the leading suppliers of oil, was very helpful. But the "détente" was short-lived: both sides viewed it as a respite, and already in the mid-1970s, the confrontation began to grow: the United States began to develop scenarios for a nuclear war with the USSR, Moscow, in response, began to modernize its missile forces and missile defense; war in Vietnam.

the stage of the "evil empires" (1979-1985), in which the reality of armed conflict between the superpowers began to grow again. The catalyst for tension was the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan in 1979, which the United States did not fail to take advantage of, providing all kinds of support to the Afghans. The information war became very sharp, starting with the exchange of ignoring the Olympic Games, first in Moscow (1980), then in Los Angeles (1984), and ending with the use of the epithets “evil empire” (with the light hand of President Reagan) against each other. The military departments of both superpowers began a more detailed study of nuclear war scenarios and the improvement of both ballistic offensive weapons and missile defense systems;

the end of the Cold War, the change of the bipolar system of the world order by the unipolar system (1985-1991). The actual victory of the United States and its allies in the Cold War, associated with the political and economic transformations in the Soviet Union, known as perestroika and associated with the activities of Gorbachev. Experts continue to argue to what extent the subsequent collapse of the USSR and the disappearance of the socialist camp are due to objective reasons, primarily the economic inefficiency of the socialist model, and to what extent it is related to incorrect geopolitical strategic and tactical decisions of the Soviet leadership. However, the fact remains that after 1991 there is only one superpower in the world, which even has an unofficial award "For victory in the cold war" - the United States.

"Third World" is a code name for developing states - countries of Africa and a number of regions of Asia, the peoples of which, in the course of the liquidation of colonial systems, created nation-states and embarked on the path of independent development. Somewhat earlier this path was chosen by the peoples of Latin America.

Despite the differences in the countries of the "third world" in terms of socio-political structure, most of them have a lower level of economic and cultural development compared to the industrial powers of Europe, North America, Japan and the most developed countries of the former "socialist bloc". » . The countries of the "third world" are the poorest, as measured by their per capita income, and are concentrated mainly in Asia, Oceania, Africa and Latin America.

The main result of the development of the countries of the "third world" by the end of the XX century. can be considered an increase in their economic gap with the countries of the West.

In the countries of the former colonies of the West (more than 130 states), in the past, due to the violent change in the social structure, economic life was stagnant, backward political relations were preserved. Most developed countries treat them as sources of raw materials, sales markets and a profitable place for investment. Liquidation of their backwardness as

The Cold War, as you know, left its mark on all regions of the world. The rivalry between the great powers in the sphere of international relations extended to Africa as well. The USSR was interested not so much in the economic resources and strategic position of African countries as in the hopes of finding allies in the historical confrontation with imperialism. Hopes were fueled by the fact that the leaders of the young African states were anti-colonialists, that is, they were supposed to be opposed to the West.

Nevertheless, the limited economic potential did not allow the USSR to achieve significant success. Its share of total aid to Africa was less than 3%; in the late 1970s the total amount of Soviet assistance to Africa was only 0.02% of the USSR GNP, which is incomparable with the share of Western countries.

The first major intervention in the African affairs of the USSR occurred in 1960 when it was supported P. Lumumba in the Congo. After his death, the USSR criticized the policy of the UN and its Secretary General D. Hammarskjöld, threatening unilateral military intervention on the side of Antoine Gizenga, who raised an uprising in the Eastern Province. In the end, the case ended with a coup, the coming to power of Mobutu and the closure of the Soviet embassy in the Congo.

Attempts to direct the first independent states were also unsuccessful. Ghana, Guinea and Mali Africa along the "non-capitalist path" development. The governments of these countries already in the early 60s. began to curtail their ties with the USSR, making sure that Moscow was mainly interested in the ideological aspects of relations.

Nevertheless, the USSR retained an interest in the problems of Africa. Since 1965, the Institute for African Studies began to expand in Moscow, the director of which was the outstanding scientist V.G. Solodovnikov; already by 1970, 350 researchers were working in the institute in all areas of African studies. Established in Moscow in 1960, the Peoples' Friendship University was named after Patrice Lumumba, and almost half of the foreign students studying there were from African countries.

Later, the behavior of the USSR in Africa became more pragmatic. In 1967, the possibilities of providing economic assistance were already being discussed. Nigeria, despite the anti-communist attitude of its leadership. In the end, the USSR provided Nigeria with a large loan to create a steel industry and began to provide military assistance to the government. Yakubu Gowon during the civil war (1967-1970). Nigeria paid in cash for all shipments. It could not be turned into a communist country, but one could try to make it friendly.

In North Africa, the USSR for a long time staked on a "socialist orientation." For this purpose, economic and military assistance was provided. Egypt. This went on until until President Sadat expelled 20 thousand Soviet specialists, and in 1976 did not finally annul the Treaty of Friendship signed with the USSR back in 1971.

After being overthrown in Algiers in 1965, the Soviet protege - the president Ahmed Ben Bella- The USSR tried to maintain friendly relations with this country, supporting the new president - Huari Boumediene. But Algeria tried to stay equidistant from the positions of both the USSR and the West, but did not refuse economic assistance and military supplies, if they were offered.

He enthusiastically supported the USSR and the coup in Sudan in May 1969, when D. Nimeiri, especially when he introduced the communist Mahdzhub into the government. That same year there were military coups. in Somalia and Libya. Their leaders S. Barre And M. Gaddafi they also practiced left-wing rhetoric, so it seemed that a block of four states was formed (with the participation of Egypt). But then everything began to quickly collapse: already in 1970, D. Nimeiri executed Mahdzhub, the Libyan dictator M. Gaddafi began to preach his theories, the situation in Egypt was gradually changing.

Only Somalia remained sphere of influence of the USSR. In 1972, the Minister of Defense of the USSR A. Grechko made a trip to Somalia, after which military ties began to develop rapidly. By 1977, Soviet military aid to Somalia reached $250 million, the country had $1 billion worth of military equipment and over 2,000 Soviet military advisers. In 1974, the USSR canceled the entire debt of Somalia.

In Kenya USSR failed in 1966, when he began to supply weapons to areas under the control of Oginga Odinga. President Jomo Kenyatta accused the USSR of financing a conspiracy against him, and O. Odinga of being a communist agent.

In September 1974 V Ethiopia fell under the regime of Emperor Haile Selassie, and the USSR had the opportunity to take the place of the United States in this country. True, cooperation with Ethiopia could spoil the relations of the USSR with Somalia, between these two African countries for a long time there was a dispute over the Ogaden border region. But the USSR went for rapprochement with Ethiopia.

When Somali troops went on the offensive in 1977, threatening to capture the Ogaden, the USSR provided emergency assistance to Ethiopia by airlifting 550 tanks, about 80 aircraft, hundreds of missiles and artillery installations, and most importantly, transferring Cuban troops there, which helped the Ethiopians repel the offensive Somalis.

Thus the new Ethiopian regime led by Mengistu Haile Mariam was able to resist but the Soviet presence in Somalia was destroyed. Ethiopia demanded more and more Soviet assistance, since in Eritrea an independence movement arose. The relations of the regime with the Oromo people living in the south and with the Tigrai people living in the north-west of the country have become aggravated. As a result, the economic costs of maintaining the pro-Soviet regime in Ethiopia became exorbitant.

Interest USSR to South Africa began to appear in the second half of the 1970s. Prior to this, military assistance to the rebel movements in Rhodesia, Namibia, and the Portuguese colonies was minimal. The collapse of the Portuguese colonial rule in Africa caused major upheavals. In Mozambique FRELIMO leader Samora Machel created a one-party state with a left-wing orientation, but soon the MNF opposed the government, the conflict with which resulted in a long civil war.

The most difficult situation was in Angola: there, on the eve of the declaration of independence in 1975, a struggle began between various political organizations: the MPLA, the FNLA and UNITA. In October 1975, South African troops intervened in this struggle, launching an invasion of Angola and acting on the side of UNITA. When was independence declared in November 1975, management MPLA declared itself the Provisional Government of the country, which was immediately recognized by most African states. MPLA leader Agos-tinho Neto turned to the USSR and Cuba for help. Cuban troops began arriving in Angola as early as November 1975; their total number soon amounted to 30 thousand people.

Large consignments of Soviet weapons were also transferred to Angola, Soviet military and economic advisers arrived, and top military officials became frequent. Thus began a long confrontation with the West, which, in the outbreak of a civil war, provided assistance to other political forces.

The war in Angola paralyzed the economy and quickly led to the degradation of the entire country, its consequences are still felt. Presence of Cuban troops in Angola ended only in 1991, when they were withdrawn under the 1988 Brazzaville Agreement.

In 1976, the embassy became the center of Soviet influence in South Africa in Zambia where he was sent by ambassador V.G. Solodovnikov. Obviously, under the influence of the USSR, the regimes on Madagascar, Comoros and Seychelles found a trend to the left. Until 1976, the annual military assistance of the USSR to Africa amounted to no more than 350 million dollars, in 1977 it increased sharply to 1.5 billion dollars, and in 1978 it increased by another 1 billion dollars.

But the economic potential of the USSR was already at the limit; soon his ability to influence Africa was drastically reduced. This was especially clear in the 1980s.

II. China's role in Africa

For a long time, the PRC did not pursue an independent foreign policy in Africa, although the embassy in Egypt was opened by the Chinese back in 1955. The PRC established diplomatic relations with Sudan and Ghana in 1959, recognized the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN) in 1958, and proposed economic assistance to Guinea ($26 million) and Mali ($19.5 million) on favorable terms.

With the aggravation of Soviet-Chinese relations, Chinese policy intensified - there was a temptation to put a spoke in the wheels of the USSR in Africa. Chinese Prime Minister Zhou Enlai 1963-1964 made visits to 10 African countries and managed to establish certain contacts there.

The PRC sought to support various kinds of rebel organizations in Africa, helped train partisans, and provoked uprisings. In the former Belgian Congo (Zaire) in the early 1960s. China supported the movement of Antoine Gizenga, then trained the partisans of Pierre Mulelet.

In 1963, the Chinese intervened in the unrest in Burundi, where Tutsi refugees from neighboring Rwanda were plotting to return to their homeland. The government of Burundi expelled a Chinese diplomatic mission. Similar events occurred in the former French Congo (Brazzaville), where the Chinese were accused of provoking a military coup in 1966.

The "cultural revolution" in China itself led to the almost complete curtailment of its activities in Africa: in 1966, Chinese ambassadors from 18 African countries were recalled.

The only country with which China has maintained cordial relations was Tanzania. The Chinese began to establish relations with this country after 1964. In 1965, Zhou Enlai and D. Nyerere exchanged visits. Soon, the countries began to jointly build the Tanzam (Tanzania-Zambia) railway to facilitate the export of minerals from Zambia, bypassing the Portuguese colony of Mozambique. Agreements to start construction were signed in 1967 and 1970. The Tanzam railway, 2,000 km long, has become China's showcase in Africa. 15 thousand workers from China worked on its construction, who, in the course of communicating with Africans, raised the prestige of their country. The construction was carried out under the leadership of the Chinese and was completed 2 years ahead of schedule.

However, China never succeeded in provoking any revolutionary unrest in Africa. The PRC could not compete even with the USSR in providing economic assistance to African countries, and the latter, in need of military assistance, preferred to turn to the USSR. Obviously, China's interest in Africa was not so great, and support for various kinds of guerrilla movements was carried out too weakly.

Similar information.

Cold War in Asia. The arena of the Cold War was not only Europe, but also Asia.

During the war with Japan, Soviet troops occupied the territories of Manchuria and North Korea. In 1946, control over Manchuria and captured captured Japanese weapons were handed over to the Chinese Communists, which greatly strengthened their positions.

in China since the late 1920s. There were two states and two governments. The national government, headed by Chiang Kai-shek, in 1946 controlled 70% of the country's territory and was recognized by most countries in the world, represented in the UN Security Council. The Chinese communists, relying on the support of the USSR, created their own system of laws in the territories they called liberated, introduced their own monetary unit, and carried out reforms leading to the establishment of egalitarian land tenure.

The war between the "two Chinas" resumed immediately after the defeat of Japan. Attempts to reconcile them, undertaken in 1945-1947, did not lead to any results. By the end of 1949, despite the support of the Chiang Kai-shek regime by the United States, the civil war in China ended with the victory of the Communists. The Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance was signed between the USSR and China. The remnants of the anti-communist forces under the command of Chiang Kai-shek, under the cover of the US Navy, were evacuated to the island of Taiwan.

The transformation of the USSR into a superpower, which, as Washington believed, controlled not only Eastern Europe, but also China with its many hundred million people, the USSR's testing of an atomic bomb in 1949, which deprived the United States of its nuclear monopoly, "caused panic in Washington. In assessing the international situation, the US ruling circles were convinced that further expansion of the boundaries of the socialist camp controlled by the USSR would lead to an irreversible change in the balance of forces in the world in its favor.

Under the conditions of the military confrontation between the USA and the USSR in Asia, the signing of a single peace treaty between the former allies and Japan turned out to be impossible. In September 1951, in San Francisco, the United States and its allied countries signed a peace treaty with Japan, which did not prohibit her from entering into military alliances and did not limit her armed forces. Simultaneously with the peace treaty, the United States signed a "security treaty" with Japan. According to this treaty, the United States received the right to maintain military bases in Japan, while guaranteeing the protection of its territory and the stability of democratic institutions. Japan abandoned its former overseas possessions, including the Kuril Islands and South Sakhalin. However, since the USSR did not sign the peace treaty as a sign of protest against the Japanese-American military alliance, it did not include a clause on the recognition of these territories as part of the USSR.

Thus, the outbreak of the Cold War did not make it possible to clearly fix the results of the Second World War, which in subsequent decades became a source of additional friction in the international arena.

Recently US Secretary of State John Kerry paid a visit to Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan. The US press noted that the main purpose of Kerry's trip was to strengthen relations with the five named states. The means of strengthening is economic partnership. However, Western analysts representing the so-called alternative press believe that Washington is developing a confrontation with Russia in the region.

Recall that John Kerry's visit to Central Asia ended two weeks ago. The US Secretary of State visited five states: Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan. This visit was literally historic. The coverage is impressive: five countries in a row. It was a frank demonstration of the buildup of American influence in the region. And the demonstration was addressed, of course, to Moscow.

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The American media wrote that the main purpose of D. Kerry's visit was to strengthen relations with the states of Central Asia through economic partnership. As for Russia, our analysts treated the reports of the American press with distrust. What is this "partnership"? Especially with Turkmenistan, where not only there is no democracy, but there is even an example of its direct opposite! However, these analysts can look towards Saudi Arabia or Qatar, where from time to time they cut off the heads of pederasts and where there is no (and is not planned) democracy either. The United States is quite successfully cooperating with these monarchies, and even the petrodollar was jointly invented.

One of the strongest states in the region, Kazakhstan (a member of the EAEU, the SCO and the CSTO), cordially received the overseas envoy. “Recently in New York, I met with US President Barack Obama, we discussed issues of bilateral cooperation. From the first days of independence of our republic, which will turn 24 in December, we have been cooperating with your country, and the people of Kazakhstan are grateful for the constant support of our sovereignty and economic development. Today, about 500 companies with American capital are operating in our country. We are focused on continuing this work,” Tengrinews.kz quotes Nursultan Nazarbayev as saying to John Kerry.

Kazakhstan is one example. The biggest. Of course, the United States will carry out "bilateral cooperation" with other countries as well.

Analysts of the South Front portal believe that the recent visit of US Secretary of State John Kerry to the countries of Central Asia demonstrates the importance of the states of the region for Washington, including in the context of negative trends in US foreign policy in Afghanistan, where the local government, seated in chairs by White House specialists is weakening, while the Taliban and its allies are strengthening.

Kerry and the foreign ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan at a meeting in Samarkand openly discussed areas of cooperation affecting a variety of areas: the economy, water security, education.

American analysts believe that this list of areas is rather formal. This is only a cover, but in reality there was also a discussion of "additional issues" in "individual countries". It is easy to predict, the authors of the article write, that the purpose of Kerry's visit and American policy in general are issues related to Afghanistan and Russia.

Afghanistan and IS activities.

The borders between the states of Central Asia and Afghanistan are attracting the attention of politicians due to the increased activity of militants of all sorts and calibers. Here are the Taliban, who were trying to capture the city of Kunduz, and the ISIS, whose formations are beginning to densely concentrate there. IS militants generally consider this area a springboard for further expansion into Central Asia.

The threat is also growing in the south. Earlier, the number of IS militants increased on the borders of Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

Along with this, analysts note "serious internal problems" of the countries of Central Asia.

All this is of great concern not only to the Central Asian states themselves, but also to the leadership of those countries that have influence in the region: first of all, Russia, the United States and China (the latter is conducting economic expansion here).

As for Russia, at the recent CSTO Collective Security Summit, it announced plans to create a joint border security initiative. Several states of Central Asia were invited to participate in the initiative. According to American analysts, additional Russian and Kazakh armed forces are already deployed in the region as part of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (since June 2015). Chinese intelligence specialists are cooperating with them.

The general structure of the deployed joint armed forces in Tajikistan includes border protection units (troops of Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, as well as Russian and Kazakh military advisers) and separate military formations from Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus (the contribution of the latter is small), deployed on the territory 201st Russian military base, in the vicinity of Dushanbe, Kulyab and Kurgan-Tube. In addition, there are units of the CSTO and the regional anti-terrorist structure (RATS) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which includes Russian, Kazakh and Chinese intelligence forces.

However, not all countries support the efforts of the CSTO. Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, for example, are discussing their own joint operations to fortify and protect their borders. These countries have previously preferred "to avoid close cooperation with the CSTO," analysts remind.

According to experts, the reason for such an attitude towards the CSTO is the ambitions of state leaders. Ashgabat and Tashkent are currently trying to establish a bilateral security partnership.

Of course, the United States paid attention to this.

Washington, like Moscow, is concerned about the growth of aggression in Afghanistan, and at the same time is interested in strengthening cooperation in the field of security with the Central Asian states in order to challenge Moscow as the dominant power providing security in the region from a military point of view.

Analysts say Washington's motives in Central Asia are clear. However, the devil is in the details: the details of how the United States intends to "strengthen cooperation" in the field of security in the region are hidden in the "fog".

However, experts believe that something can be assumed.

Turkmenistan could grant the United States the permanent right to use the Mary-2 base (located near the border of Turkmenistan with Afghanistan).

Another possible plan is US support for a joint Uzbek-Turkmen border security initiative.

Another "topic" could be an increase in the US presence in Tajikistan. Tajikistan is considered one of Russia's closest allies in Central Asia, and therefore Washington would like to increase its influence here.

Of course, so far none of these forms of cooperation has been fully confirmed. Nevertheless, analysts believe that the Kremlin may pay attention to these "attempts". "Division of efforts" will make holes in the regional security system of Russia. Recent events in Afghanistan have made it clear that US military efforts are unlikely to enhance regional security. As a matter of fact, American forces are simply not enough for this.

Experts believe that only the combined forces of Russia and Kazakhstan will be able to “quickly and effectively” counter the threat of ISIS. The military of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan do not have the appropriate military equipment; the armed forces of these countries are not able to act effectively. Well, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, as noted above, are trying to avoid participating in joint CSTO events.

Analysts, however, take it upon themselves to assert that, on the whole, Russia, China, Kazakhstan and other states of Central Asia assess the existing threats correctly.

However, the unstable situation on the borders of the countries of Central Asia and Afghanistan leads to the fact that the confrontation between the United States and Russia is unfolding "across the entire former Soviet periphery."

You will not argue with this, we will add from ourselves. Otherwise, it would not have been a cold war, but an ardent friendship of peoples. So in Syria, there are also two coalitions against ISIS: one with the Russians, and the second - you know with whom.