ABSTRACT
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the newly independent Central Asian states have established the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) to address the Aral Sea crisis and jointly manage their transboundary rivers. IFAS has developed into and remained an important forum to enable both formal and informal dialogue on regional water cooperation, coordination with donors, and addressing smaller-scale and technical transboundary water issues. However, due to its structural weaknesses and dependency on regional power constellations, it has not managed to be a strong water diplomacy actor at a political level. Rather, it provides a set of institutionalized structures for dialogue and cooperation of which actors at various levels can make use if political will is given.
