Turkestan

= Turkestan = Turkestan is a country in Central Asia, which today is largely inhabited by Turkic Peoples, from whence it gets its name. Currently, Turkestan is ruled by the emir of Bukhara as a monarchistic Emirate. Turkestan is bordered by Alash Orda to the north, as well as Xibei Lianbang Yiyuan to the east, and Afghanistan and Persia to the south. Its capital is the historical city of Samarkand, which was also the capital of nations like the once mighty Timurid Empire.

Geography
Turkestan expands over a relatively broad area, stretching from the Caspian sea in the west to the Tian Shan mountain range in the east. The country is scarred by Karakum Desert in the lands of the Turkmen, and contains fertile valleys in the Amu Darya and Syr Darya river basins. To the north, along its border with Alash Orda, lies the Kyzyl Kum, a harsh desert that's the 11th largest on earth. The Syr and Amy Darya rivers also empty into the Aral Sea, which has been declared a neutral zone by the Turkestani and Alash Ordan governments.

History
Ever since the fall of the Timurid empire, the region of Turkestan has been marred by violence and war with foriegn empires. It quickly became the buffer zone and object of desire during the conflict between the Russian and British Empires known as The Great Game.

While Russia took over all of modern day Turkestan, certain local rulers were allowed to stay in control, one of them being Mohammed Alim Khan of the Manghit dynasty, which ruled over Bukhara. During the Russian Civil War, Alim Khan joined with several other local emirs and tribal leaders in order to intimidate both the Bolsheviks and Whites, each wishing to impose their will over Turkestan. In the process, Ismail Enver Pasha, an ambitious pan-Turanic leader from the Ottoman Empire, joined the struggle with a small group of mercenaries and became very influential in the new Turkestan, helping Alim Khan spread his influence.

Russian resistance was broken after the Turkestanis destroyed a commune in Tashkent and uprooted a White general, allowing for the new Turkestan to officially take hold. These victories coupled with the new buffer state of Alash Orda developing between Russia and Turkestan would allow Turkestan greater stability in the years to come.

Government
Currently, Turkestan is ruled under the strict dictatorship of Alim Khan and Ismail Enver Pasha. The two represent an alliance between the Sunni fundamentalists under Alim Khan to create a new caliphate in the region, and the Pan-Turanists under Ismail Enver Pasha. While so far these two ideologies have flourished together in the ruling few of Turkestan, it is uncertain whether they will continue to do so, let alone peruse their ambitious goals.