Caucasus and Central Asia : integration or disintegration

While the Caucasian and Central Asian (CCA) regions host ethnically and culturally diverse populations, and are difficult to traverse due to the challenging geography, the countries have a long history of political and economic integration. Much of the region was ruled by Timur in the 14th to 16th centuries and, after being separated by Persian invasion in Caucasus and Chinese invasion in Central Asia, the Russian invasion in the 1700’s brought the two again under a shared rule. Subsequently, the CCA became part of the Soviet Union, and the national borders of today were to a large extent drawn during that era as the borders of the Soviet national republics.