The geopolitical space of Eurasia and the security challenges that arise within it require strategic thinking, as well as specific regional expertise and insight. As we approach the passage of two decades since the end of the Cold War and breakup of the Soviet Union, it becomes apparent how the Eurasian continent is a dynamic space which must be conceptualized, understood, and engaged wisely. The term Eurasia often refers to the post-Soviet states, for lack of a better term, and certainly attention to the states of Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe should be enhanced. The Eurasian Strategy Project, however, aims to do more: to place these states in the context of their development as part of the continent that encompasses Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The new project will aim to look at issues that are truly Eurasian in scope, and to bring attention to the insights and understanding we can have only by thinking of the region as a linked and interrelated whole.

In particular, through publications, conferences, and meetings, the Eurasian Strategy Project seeks to promote structured interaction between academic, think-tank, and U.S. policy communities. The current core of the project is PONARS Eurasia, the Program on New Approaches to Research and Security in Eurasia, an international network of social scientists that seek to promote scholarly work and policy engagement on transnational and cross-border issues, as well as comparative political and public policy topics, within the Eurasian space. The project also convenes meetings with a cohort of former U.S. policymakers and analysts to identify key developments and vital unknowns in Eurasia that will have a significant impact on U.S. national interests in the coming decade. These meetings seek to develop specific policy analysis and strategies for currently serving U.S. policymakers and analysts, and to serve as a nonpartisan expert forum for critically assessing U.S. policy in Eurasia.