Abstract

Disillusionment with post-1989 neoliberal capitalism and the deepening global political and economic crises have prompted a significant revival of interest in Marxism in recent years. In response to this renewed interest, Princeton University Press released a new major English translation of Karl Marx's Capital, Volume I, in 2024. Another development that emerged from this revival is a scholarly reevaluation and resignification of Marxist thought from the socialist period in Eastern Europe and the former Yugoslavia. In Central Asia, the region's Marxist intellectual tradition has not yet received a similar attention. Organised by the Central Asian Marxist Institute, an independent network of scholars, this roundtable is a follow-up to the research workshop "Marxism and Marxists in Socialist Central Asia" held at the American University of Central Asia in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, in June 2024. We want to pose two questions for the participants and the audience of this roundtable discussion. First, on the state of Marxist thought in Central Asia, both historically and at present. Second, on the relevance of Marxist perspectives on Central Asia in contemporary international scholarship on the region.