A leading authority on Central Asia offers a sweeping review of the region's path from independence to the post-9/11 world. The first decade of Central Asian independence was disappointing for those who envisioned a straightforward transition from Soviet republics to independent states with market economies and democratic political systems. Leaders excused political failures by pointing to security risks, including the presence of terrorist training camps in Afghanistan. The situation changed dramatically after 9/11, when the camps were largely destroyed and the United States introduced a military presence. More importantly the international community engaged with these states to give them a "second chance" to address social and economic problems. But neither the aid-givers nor the recipients were willing to approach problems in new ways. Now, terrorists groups are once again making their presence felt and some states may be becoming global security risks. This book explores how the region squandered its second chance and what might happen next.

玛莎·布瑞尔·奥卡特，中亚问题、反恐怖主义、石油和天然气、美俄关系及伊斯兰问题的研究专家。在“9·11”之后，奥卡特被华盛顿杂志评为在反恐怖主义战争中美国总统可咨询的71位专家之一。1995年加入卡内基国际和平基金会。同时，她也在科尔盖特大学（Colgate University）担任政治学教授。奥卡特与别人共同负责卡内基莫斯科中心关于前苏联内部民族和政治的项目，并以此为基础组织了一些学术论坛和会议，出版了关于苏联解体后各个由多民族组成的共和国国家建设和俄罗斯地区与民族冲突方面的出版物。她曾经任代理国务卿劳伦斯·伊格尔伯格（Acting Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburge）的特别顾问、中亚美国企业基金会的会长。奥卡特从芝加哥大学毕业，1975年至今一直在科尔盖特大学任职。她出版了很多关于中亚的著作。专著有：《哈萨克斯坦：未兑现的承诺》（Kazakhstan：Unfulfilled Promise，卡内基国际和平基金会，2002年出版）；《走向错误：地区合作与独联体》（Getting It Wrong：Regional Cooperation and the Commonwealth of Independent States，与安德斯·阿斯伦德（Anders Aslund）和谢尔曼·嘎奈特（Sherman Gamett）合著，卡内基国际和平基金会，1999年出版）；《共产主义之后的俄罗斯》（Russia after Communism，由奥卡特与安德斯·阿斯伦德共同编辑，卡内基国际和平基金会，1999年出版）。