{"id":1399,"date":"2026-07-28T13:05:07","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T13:05:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399"},"modified":"2026-07-28T13:05:57","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T13:05:57","slug":"central-asia-from-periphery-to-power-pt-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399","title":{"rendered":"Central Asia: From Periphery to Power Pt. 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@TheGeopoliticsReview\"><\/a>Explore the complex geopolitical landscape of Central Asia through insights from Dr. Filippo Costa-Brunelli, an expert in international relations and regional geopolitics. This episode covers regional transformations, great power influences, and Italy\u2019s diplomatic engagement in the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Central Asia: From Periphery to Power Pt. 2\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/h_OBVuBLJmo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We discuss:<br>The impact of Russia\u2019s military conflict in Ukraine on Central Asia\u2019s strategic autonomy and its influence dynamics with Russia, China, and other actors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How China\u2019s approach, emphasizing sovereignty and mutual respect, has succeeded in shaping economic ties, despite underlying dependencies and local resistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The role of Azerbaijan and the Caucasus in enhancing connectivity, energy, and cultural links with Central Asia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Common misconceptions of Central Asia: the \u201cDistance\u201d myth and the outdated \u201cNew Great Game\u201d narrative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The development and nuances of Italy\u2019s diplomatic 5 plus 1 platform\u2014focusing on soft power, education, and people-to-people ties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The resilience of authoritarian regimes in Central Asia, regional practices, and prospects (or lack thereof) for democratic reforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Recommended resources for further reading on Central Asian geopolitics, culture, history, and energy politics.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Explore the complex geopolitical landscape of Central Asia through insights from Dr. Filippo Costa-Brunelli, an expert in international relations and regional geopolitics. This episode covers regional transformations, great power influences, and Italy\u2019s diplomatic engagement in the region.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1400,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Central Asia: From Periphery to Power Pt. 2 - Democratic Security Institute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Central Asia: From Periphery to Power Pt. 2 - Democratic Security Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Explore the complex geopolitical landscape of Central Asia through insights from Dr. Filippo Costa-Brunelli, an expert in international relations and regional geopolitics. This episode covers regional transformations, great power influences, and Italy\u2019s diplomatic engagement in the region.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democratic Security Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=100088850526858\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-28T13:05:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-07-28T13:05:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/vlcsnap-2026-07-28-16h57m13s529.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"demsecinstitute\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@demsecinstitute\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@demsecinstitute\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"demsecinstitute\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"demsecinstitute\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/#\/schema\/person\/152bec0207fcadfc3b09da892465859f\"},\"headline\":\"Central Asia: From Periphery to Power Pt. 2\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-28T13:05:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-07-28T13:05:57+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399\"},\"wordCount\":183,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/vlcsnap-2026-07-28-16h57m13s529.png\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/demsecinstitute.org\/?p=1399\",\"name\":\"Central Asia: From Periphery to Power Pt. 2 - 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