Date: November 6, 2026

Time: 15:00 – 16:00 (Bishkek time)

Researchers: Vladyslav Butenko, Matthew Heneghan

Language: English

Format: online

Registration form: https://forms.gle/ovh8XaJb79tVYKN18

Description: 

This seminar brings together two perspectives on labour migration in Central Asia, exploring the transformation of Russia-centred mobility regimes, the diversification of migration destinations, and the role of migration diplomacy amid growing geopolitical uncertainty.

“Migration Governance under Geopolitical Pressure: How Central Asian States Adapt Labour-Migration Policies amid the Transformation of Russia-Centred Mobility Regimes” (Vladyslav Butenko)

Labour migration governance in Central Asia is transforming under geopolitical pressure. For three decades, the mobility regime linking Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan to the Russian labour market has been a major driver of regional development. Yet global turbulence, together with the tightening of Russian migration policy after the March 2024 Crocus City Hall attack, has made this dependence costlier and less predictable.

In this seminar, Vladyslav Butenko will examine why Russia’s migration policy has shifted and what it means for the region. He will show how a long-standing tension between the geopolitical aim of retaining influence in the so-called post-Soviet space and domestic pressure to restrict immigration has been sharpened by a series of shocks. He will then discuss the consequences for Central Asian states and the way they can build up coordinated, long-term migration policy.

Migration Diplomacy without Migration? Central Asia and the Proxy Politics of International Labour Mobility (Matthew Heneghan)

Over the past decade, Central Asian governments have pursued accelerated labour migration diversification strategies through bilateral agreements aimed at reducing dependence on Russia while expanding access to higher-income labour markets in Europe, the Middle East, and East Asia. Beyond creating new migration corridors, these initiatives seek to reposition Central Asian states within global value chains by linking their labour forces to more strategically significant economies. Despite substantial political and administrative investment, however, these efforts have generated relatively limited labour mobility, with Russia remaining the dominant destination for migrant workers. This paper examines why governments may continue to prioritise diversification despite modest material outcomes. Drawing on the concept of migration diplomacy, it argues that the value of such strategies lies not solely in the movement of workers and remittances, but also in their diplomatic and developmental spillover effects. Internationally, engagement with labour mobility frameworks has enhanced the credibility of Central Asian states as cooperative partners and norm-compliant actors. Domestically, the pursuit of new migration corridors has incentivised investments in skills development, vocational training and labour market reform, thereby contributing to wider processes of human capital development. Expanding the geographical, theoretical, and empirical scope of research into migration diplomacy, the paper contends that migration diversification strategies remain politically worthwhile even in the absence of substantial changes in migration flows.

Agenda

15:00-15:05 Words of Welcome by Dr. Pal Dunay, Director of the OSCE Academy in Bishkek

15:05-15:20 Presentation by Vladyslav Butenko

15:20-15:35 Presentation by Matthew Heneghan

15:35 – 15:55 Q&A Session and Discussion

15:55 – 16:00 Closing

BIO

Vladyslav Butenko is an independent researcher and an Associate Research Fellow at the OSCE Academy in Bishkek. He holds a PhD in Political Science and specializes in international relations, European studies, comparative politics, and migration governance. His research focuses on immigrant integration, Europeanization, the welfare state–immigration nexus, and the political dimensions of mobility in Europe and Central Asia. Vladyslav primarily employs qualitative methods, including comparative case study analysis and process tracing. He has also taught university-level courses such as Comparative Politics, European Studies, Foreign Policy Analysis, Human Rights in World Politics, and Language Policy in the Post-Soviet Area. 

Vladyslav regularly writes for The Loop, the political science blog. He also serves as a peer reviewer for academic journals, including Central Asia and the Caucasus; International Affairs: Politics, Economics, Law; International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship; Revista Brasileira de Estudos Políticos; Public Administration and Civil Service; Przegląd Europejski. He is a member of the Academic Council on the United Nations System; the Central Asia, Caucasus & Mongolia Science and Technology Association; the European Consortium for Political Research; the Global De(Centre); and the International Migration Research Network. 

Matthew Heneghan is an ESRC Doctoral Researcher in the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Glasgow and Associate Research Fellow at the OSCE Academy in Bishkek. His research focuses on the political economy of labour migration, remittances and development across Europe and Central Asia. For his doctoral project, he explores the political interlinkages between remittance-led development strategies and financialization in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. He previously held research positions with the Institute for Advanced International Studies, LSE IDEAS and Tufts University. He has lectured International Political Economy and Comparative Politics at the University of Edinburgh, Central European University and the University of World Economy and Diplomacy. Alongside his academic work, he regularly consults for international development agencies on issues relating to migration, development and governance. He is a graduate of the London School of Economics and Political Science, the University of Edinburgh and Lomonosov Moscow State University.