Ten Years After the Soviet Breakup: Disillusionment in the Caucasus and Central Asia

Kyrgyzstan’s parliamentary-style constitution was a democratic bright spot in Central Asia. But the legislature quickly devolved into a corrupt bazaar, dimming its democratic prospects.

The central problems now blocking democracy in Georgia and other parts of the former USSR are: 1) the use of power in order to gain wealth; 2) the absence of…

Despite huge changes, the events of the last ten years raise doubts about the notion of “democratic transition” itself.