Security And Human Right To Water In Central Asia

This book examines the impact and implications of the declaration of human right to water and sanitation access for human security in Central Asia. It analyzes the current risks and threats arising from mismanagement of water resources in Central Asia through the different dimensions of human security: environmental, economic, social, and political. Identifying the main actors involved in water conflict in the region, the author pays particular attention to the multilateral security organizations operating in the region, OSCE, NATO, SCO, and CSTO, and discusses whether their security policies have been effective in addressing these conflicts.

Promoting Transboundary Water Security in the Aral Sea Basin through International Law addresses the current gap in the literature by moving beyond the static identification of treaties and norms to examine how these treaties and norms can work for water security in practice.

Contents: (1) Intro.; (2) Central Asia¿s (CA) External Security Context; (3) Security Problems and Progress: Islamic Extremism and Terrorism; Terrorist Activities; Attacks in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan; Incursions into Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan; Civil War in Tajikistan; Border Tensions; Crime and Corruption; Economic and Defense Security; The Collective Security Treaty Org.; Water Resources; Energy and Transport; Illegal Narcotics Production, Use, and Trafficking; (4) Implications for U.S. Interests: Reactions to U.S.-Led Coalition Actions in Iraq; Military Coop.; Closure of Karshi-Khanabad; Emphasis on Kazakhstan as Strategic Partner; Manas Airbase in Kyrgyzstan; Counter-Narcotics Aid; (5) Issues for Congress: Should the U.S. Play a Prominent Role in CA?

Examining the water, development and security linkages in Central Asia can feel a bit like solving a Rubik’s cube. The Rubik’s cube starts to usually find structure and the different pieces find their places when its solver adopts a systematic approach. Still, solving the whole cube takes time and perseverance. This is also the case with water and security in Central Asia as demonstrated by the chapters in this book. In the case of water and security in Central Asia, there are many "faces", including not only the Central Asian states but also the neighbouring countries and other players of global geopolitics; "stickers" such as policies, practices, causes, and impacts; and "colours" such as the different stakeholders, ranging from the micro and meso levels to the macro level. Understanding all these, or getting clarity on the nexus, can seem extremely challenging. Even though none of the chapters alone answers the question of what constitutes water and security in Central Asia, each of them gives thoughtful ideas and information on the complexity of the issue. This book was published as a special issue of the International Journal of Water Resources Development.

Formally acknowledging water as a human right could encourage the international community and governments to enhance their efforts to satisfy basic human needs and to meet the Millennium Development Goals. But critical questions arise in relation to a right to water. What would be the benefits and content of such a right? What mechanisms would be required for its effective implementation? Should the duty be placed on governments alone, or should the responsibility also be borne by private actors? Is another 'academic debate' on this subject warranted when action is really what is necessary? Without claiming to prescribe the answers, this publication clearly and carefully sets out the competing arguments and the challenges.

Offers a scholarly treatment of debates on the relationship between water scarcity and environmental security in Central Eurasia, using discussions of sustainable rural development as its conceptual backdrop. This volume combines empirical investigation with analysis of key concepts such as 'scarcity', 'expert knowledge', and 'efficiency'.

After the sovjet era and since their independence the new Central Asian countries are rebuilding a system of water resources management: an important challenge for the development of the whole region. The NATO workshop held on 25-27 August 2003 by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, Germany and the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science, attended by experts from five Central Asian countries, Russia, six Western European countries, the US and the UNEP offered water engineers and nature scientists as well as economic and political scientists and practitioners from water administrations and international river commissions to meet in Novosibirsk and develop sustainable approaches in the management of Central Asian water resources. This book presents important aspects of transboundary water resources, i.e. the global water crisis: problems and perspectives; regional experiences in solving water problems in Central Asia; problems and management of transboundary water resources; ecological and economic aspects of water management; scientific analysis and tools of water changes; strategic implications of water access arisen during the workshop. A final recommendation in the area of equitable sharing of benefits, monitoring and data collection as well as proposals for Central Asia transboundary waters programme were set in the book as the main result of the meeting.