RADIO FREE EUROPE/ RADIO LIBERTY

Since 1998, when Asia's financial crisis also became a financial crisis for Russia and other post-Soviet states, the former post-communist economies have changed dramatically, in some cases rapidly. Much of the speed has been attributable to a boom in demand for energy and for metal, but there have also been radical changes: in ownership structure, in legislation, and in attitude. The trends have differed: some countries have chosen both reform and greater openness, others are reforming but also becoming more tightly controlled, and some are neither reforming nor becoming more open. The result is a very varied region, enjoying some dynamic growth but also suffering from corrosive poverty, and a range of political economies, from countries that are both embracing the World Trade Organization and a relatively liberal reform agenda to states that reject reform and clamp down even on small, cross-border 'shuttle traders.'

In Iran, there is a similar struggle over whether to open its economy and how to meet the dual challenges of employing a fast-growing and demanding population and yet retaining political control. In Iraq and Afghanistan, the challenge is starker -- how to develop economies when insecurity is a chronic concern.

This RFE/RL special report records the region's economic experience since 1999, following the financial crisis of 1998, and explores the political and economic nature of the many different systems and challenges in its coverage region.