For Uzbekistan, 2019 was a turning point, marking the third year of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s time as leader of Uzbekistan. That time frame is arguably long enough to enable a population to evaluate the activities of its government with a sober eye and expect results... MORE

The Second Central Asian Leaders’ Consultative Summit—involving the five Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan—was supposed to take place during the Navruz holiday (March), in the Uzbekistani capital of Tashkent; but it ended up being postponed several times due ostensibly to... MORE

On October 15, the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Uzbekistan formally permitted all five state-created and state-funded political parties to run in the upcoming general elections, scheduled for December 22 (Elections.uz, October 15). Hopes that genuine opposition parties or change-driven independent candidates inside the country... MORE

Tsentr 2019, this year’s largest Russian strategic-operational exercise, involving both Russian troops and seven regional allies and partners, was a highly promoted event by Russia’s state-owned news outlets. According to Sputnik News, the maneuvers (September 16–21) “demonstrated to the world the unprecedented defensive capabilities of... MORE

On October 2, while on an official visit to Tashkent, the chairperson of Russia’s Federation Council (upper chamber of parliament), Valentina Matviyenko, unexpectedly announced Uzbekistan’s supposed intention to join the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) (RIA News, October 2). Days later, another Russian politician, Farid Mukhamedshin,... MORE

The Russian Armed Forces staged their annual strategic-level military exercise this past week (September 16–21), alongside units from seven partner countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, China, India and Pakistan—all of them Moscow’s allies in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). This year’s strategic command-staff exercise (strategicheskiye komandno-shtabnyye ucheniya—SKShU), Tsentr... MORE

The Uzbekistan-China Intergovernmental Cooperation Committee held its fifth meeting on August 26, in Beijing. Uzbekistan’s committee co-chair, Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov, led his country’s delegation to the Chinese capital (Fmprc.gov.cn, August 28). The intergovernmental committee has been a regular and consistent biannual fixture in the... MORE

During his address to the 20th Plenary Session of Uzbekistan’s Senate, on June 21, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev expressed fears that the country’s manufacturers could face increasing difficulties accessing their traditional export markets. His suggested solution, to join the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU—the Russian-dominated regional trade... MORE

In recent weeks, Russian media has been actively reporting on Uzbekistan’s various contracts to purchase Russian military equipment—some of it apparently state of the art (see below). The multiple deals indicate Tashkent’s determination to elevate arms-sale negotiations with Moscow to a higher level. In 2017,... MORE

The second Central Asian Leaders’ Consultative Working Meeting was supposed to take place this spring, in Tashkent. However, scheduling conflicts around the Navruz holiday (March 20, 2019) prevented the summit from convening. For a time, there were indications that the summit would simply be rescheduled... MORE