This article explores how the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) serves as a collective ontological security mechanism for post-Soviet Turkic republics. Building upon Giddens’s ontological security theory, Mitzen’s state-level perspective, and Steele’s moral-narrative framework, the study positions the OTS as a regional institution mitigating existential anxieties through shared narratives of identity, continuity, and strategic unity. Applying Critical Discourse Analysis and securitization theory, it investigates summit declarations and presidential discourses from 2021 to 2025. The analysis reveals a shift from cultural and historical references to securitized and strategic narratives, signaling the OTS’s transformation into a civilizational regional actor that anchors identity within power dynamics. The study concludes that ontological security is maintained through narrative consistency, enabling member states to assert a shared sense of selfhood.

Keywords: Ontological security, Organization of Turkic States, Discourse, Securitization, Regional identity, Post-Soviet, Collective selfhood, Narrative politics.

DOI : https://doi.org/10.53277/2519-2442-2026.1-01 [HTML]

In this paper, the changing paradigm of the Chinese government’s response to the Arctic region is examined, with special focus on the increasing engagement of the non-Arctic state within the region, which has initially been under the impact of Arctic nations. It analyzes the progress of China’s engagement in the Arctic region, from science-based research in the late twentieth century to the formation of a structured geopolitical and geo-economic strategy in the region. The study examines various aspects of China’s involvement in the Arctic, such as scientific cooperation, environmental initiatives, infrastructure projects, and investments in energy development. In particular, the “Polar Silk Road” initiative, which extends China’s Belt and Road Initiative to include the Arctic’s Northern Sea Route in China’s vision of an alternative global trade route, receives special consideration. Moreover, this study evaluates China’s political approach in terms of supporting the “near-Arctic state” stance and the pursuit of an internationalized governance pattern in the Arctic. Finally, with a holistic approach that combines politics, science, and economics, this study provides insight into China’s strategic intentions in the Arctic and what such intentions may mean for the regional and global future balance.

Keywords: China, Arctic strategy, Near-Arctic state, Polar Silk Road, Ice Silk Road, Northern Sea Route, China’s Arctic policy

DOI : https://doi.org/10.53277/2519-2442-2026.1-02 [HTML]

In the post-Soviet space, the dynamics of the electoral process serve as an indicator of the level of civic engagement and trust in institutions, which is particularly evident in the examples of Kazakhstan, Russia, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Despite common historical and institutional legacies, these countries demonstrate noticeable differences in voter turnout, the share of protest votes, and media profiles. The objective of the study was to identify and compare the key institutional, media and behavioral determinants of election regimes based on data from the 2015–24 parliamentary and presidential campaigns. A comprehensive application of descriptive statistics, time series analysis, coefficient of variation, multiple regression and content analysis of television news showed that Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are characterized by a high centralization of administrative resources and the dominance of state media (stable at over 85%), Russia has a balanced mix of state and private broadcasting, and Kyrgyzstan has a multiplex and private media environment. The growth of the share of private media correlates with the widening of the turnout spread (<60% →>80%) and the increase in protest votes (up to 12%). To increase the transparency and legitimacy of electoral procedures, it is recommended that independent media monitoring be expanded, barriers for small parties and observers be reduced, and reliable digital voting formats be introduced, taking into account the need to counteract information manipulation.

Keywords: Electoral regime, Kazakhstan, Elections, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Post-Soviet space

DOI : https://doi.org/10.53277/2519-2442-2026.1-03 [HTML]

The article examines the social effects of the development of small and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kazakhstan, where prior research has mainly concentrated on macroeconomic factors while neglecting social outcomes. The study aims to quantitatively assess the impact of the SME sector on key social indicators, such as household income, poverty rates, and reliance on targeted social assistance and to identify regional variations in these effects. It uses panel data from 15 regions of Kazakhstan spanning 2005–2023 (285 observations) and employs panel regression models with fixed and random effects. The findings show that an increase in the share of SMEs in the regional economy has a statistically significant positive impact on household income, while also helping to reduce poverty and the number of social assistance recipients. Nevertheless, growth in the number of SME entities or jobs within the sector alone does not ensure improved well-being, emphasizing the importance of productivity and job quality. These results underscore the role of SMEs as a key driver of inclusive economic growth and social resilience.

Keywords: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Household income, Poverty, Targeted social assistance, Regional development, Panel data

DOI : https://doi.org/10.53277/2519-2442-2026.1-04 [HTML]

Resource-rich countries frequently exhibit fiscal behavior that reinforces economic fluctuations. This article evaluates the procyclicality of Kazakhstan’s public finances and examines whether recent reforms to fiscal rules and transfer arrangements – particularly those related to the National Fund and intergovernmental transfers – have improved the stabilization of expenditures. Drawing on harmonized annual (2000–2024) and quarterly (2002Q1–2024Q4) official data, we estimate the elasticities of revenues and expenditures with respect to the output gap and assess how these relationships evolve around major institutional changes. We find that revenues and expenditures are both procyclical, but the main transmission mechanism operates through the revenue side: revenue elasticities are persistently larger than expenditure elasticities. Episodes of reform coincide with a statistically significant reduction in expenditure sensitivity of roughly 0.08–0.12 percentage points, whereas revenue sensitivity shows little change. Current expenditures display stronger procyclicality than capital expenditures, and subnational budgets exhibit higher cyclicality overall – though this effect is attenuated when transfers follow stable, formula-based rules rather than discretionary supplements

Keywords: Kazakhstan, Finance, Budget, Resource-dependent economy, Revenues, expenses, Procyclicality, Transparency

DOI : https://doi.org/10.53277/2519-2442-2026.1-05 [HTML]

Nadirova, G. (2026). [Review of Tourism as memory-making: Russian tourism in the shadow of empire]. Eurasian Research Journal, 8(1), 109-111. https://doi.org/10.53277/2519-2442-2026.1-06


DOI : https://doi.org/10.53277/2519-2442-2026.1-06 [HTML]