“10 April 2006”.

Policy report—cover page.

Includes bibliographical references.

Contents: Executive summary and recommendations—I. Introduction—II. Why should central Asia matter to the EU—III. What has been done?—IV. What should be done?—V. Conclusion.

Summary: EU assistance to the region has largely taken the form of technical assistance implemented through the program (TACIS that was designed in 1991 to support transition to market economies and reinforce democracy and the rule of law in the post-Soviet space. That program has included a number of large trans-national projects in transport, drugs, border controls and energy which show few results for the time and money invested. Despite some assistance given to combating drug trafficking, the potential for ill-gotten gains from the drug trade continues to undermine efforts—(p. i).