DIVERGENCE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONTEMPORARY MIDDLE EAST COUNTRIES (TURKEY, IRAN, PAKISTAN)

Abstract

Rates of economic growth and some major parameters of socio-economic development of the countries of the contemporary Middle East are analyzed in the article. Departing from the Russian geopolitical tradition the author puts forward arguments for delineating the region comprising Turkey, Iran and Pakistan as chief components of today's Middle East which does not include the mostly Arab Near East. The article proceeds to reveal some basic features of development of the three countries and underlines that socio-economic and socio-cultural charactestics of these countries in the initial stage after the end of WWII were to a large extent similar. But later their growth started to differ considerably. In the result, Turkey has progressed to have a higher middle income economy with a solid industrial-cum-agricultural basis. Iran was lagging somewhat behind with fast but uneven rates of growth. Both states have left Pakistan squirely behind belonging to lower-income countries, suffering from overpopulation and inadequate productivity of labour in both agricultural and industrial sectors. Some reasons of such divergence are mentioned in the article which concludes with remarks on how difference in the economic sphere may influnce geopolitical situation in the region.