ABSTRACT
One of the unexpected by-products of the political chaos that followed the implosion of the Soviet superpower in 1991 was the emergence of the Caspian region as a potentially significant energy zone for the twenty-first century. In tandem with Central Asia’s growing importance as a new sub-region of west Asia and the vast Eurasian landmass, the Caspian region developed in the course of the last decade of the twentieth century into an important security and strategic arena with an apparent potential to provide additional energy for the world economy. Such important strategic and geopolitical factors as hydrocarbon deposits and supply routes, and fears of Central Asian and Caucasian political instabilities affecting the neighbouring regions, combined to give these new countries and territories of the post-Cold War international system particular importance.
