The fifth installment of our Behind the Front Page summer teleconference series on the rise of extremism and insecurity in Central Asia and its geopolitical ramifications. The call featured Ms. Aitolkyn Kourmanova, Visiting Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Dr. Paul Stronski, Senior Associate, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Mr. Justin Burke, Managing Editor at EurasiaNet.org, served as moderator.

As thousands flock to terror organizations in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, a growing sense of insecurity has begun to settle across Central Asia following the withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan. Radicalism is growing in the region: many extremist groups operating in Central Asia have links to the Taliban and other terror organizations, including the Islamic State. The International Crisis Group estimates that as many as 4,000 people have joined or assisted ISIL fighters, who now control large segments of Syria and Iraq. The uneasy geopolitical situation might in turn have a negative impact on the region's hope to dominate the world's energy marketplace. Central Asian States - from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to Turkmenistan - are home to vast amounts of oil and natural gas reserves.

Who are the major geopolitical players in the region, and what are their interests? How has the oil and natural gas market changed the economic, political, and strategic landscape of Central Asia? Our participants debated and discussed these questions and more.