ABSTRACT
Martin and Dina Specifier’s chapter (Chapter 11) provides an important analysis of the development and driving forces of Russia’s position and influence in Central Asia. Since I completely agree with the main conclusion of the paper, claiming that Russia’s influence in the region is certainly not increasing (and, probably, is even declining), the aim of this discussion is to provide some alternative perspectives and lines of argument dealing with the problem. Any work in social sciences relies on simplifying assumptions; so also does Martin and Dina Spechler’s chapter. I am going to provide two alternative sets of assumptions, which may be helpful in understanding the processes determining the structure of interaction between Russia and Central Asia.
