
Latest Articles about Uzbekistan

Nazarbayev-Karimov Summit Imparts New Momentum to Kazakhstani-Uzbekistani Relations
In his first official bilateral visit to Kazakhstan since April 2008, President Islam Karimov and other senior Uzbekistani officials discussed a range of important bilateral, regional and international issues with their Kazakhstani counterparts in Astana on September 6–7, 2012. These topics included boosting two-way economic... MORE

CSTO Prepares for Internal Organizational Crisis by December 2012
Views on the future of Central Asia’s security differ within the region and beyond. And there are also major differences within the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) itself. These differences have long existed, though more recently they were brought into focus by Uzbekistan’s suspension of... MORE

Twists and Turns of Uzbekistan’s Foreign Policy
Stability is cherished by the regime in Uzbekistan, but it does not mean changing foreign policy views is out of line. Such is the outlook in Tashkent where, on July 31, the lower house of parliament approved President Islam Karimov’s proposal for a new foreign... MORE

The Influence of North Caucasus Islamic Radicals on the Situation in Central Asia
On July 20, five men suspected of terrorism-related activities were arrested in Atyrau (western Kazakhstan). The arrested men had contacts with the Az-Zahir Baibars Brigades of Jund al-Khilafah (Soldiers of the Caliphate), which was founded by three Kazakhs from Atyrau and ordered attacks in Kazakhstan... MORE

New Foreign Policy Strategy Paper Codifies Uzbekistan’s Reluctance Toward Restrictive Alliances
On August 1, the Lower Chamber of Uzbekistan’s Parliament – the Oliy Majlis – approved the country’s own national security strategy, “The Concept Paper on the Foreign Policy Activity of Uzbekistan.” One of the essential elements in this articulated strategy is the position not to... MORE

Central Asia Commits to Russian Joint Air Defense Plans
The 62nd meeting of the CIS Council of Defense Ministers in Kaliningrad on July 5 discussed deepening security cooperation on a broad range of issues within the former Soviet space, with special attention to developing integrated air defense architecture – long discussed by the CIS... MORE

Uzbekistan’s Balancing Act With China: A View From the Ground
The exact reasons for Uzbekistan’s decision to withdraw from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) at the end of June remain unclear (Xinhua, June, 29; Russia Today, June 28, 2012). However, while Tashkent seems to have soured on the Russian-led regional organization, President Islam Karimov... MORE

Factors that Influenced Uzbekistan’s Decision to Pull out of the CSTO: The View from Tashkent
On June 28, Uzbekistan announced its decision to suspend its membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). The CSTO is a predecessor of the Collective Security Treaty that was signed on Uzbekistan’s own initiative in Tashkent on May 15, 1992, at the peak of... MORE

Uzbekistan Prepares for the NATO Drawdown
Tashkent’s controversial decision on June 20 to suspend its membership of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) was widely misinterpreted as either signaling its complete withdrawal from the organization or as part of a policy to position itself to develop much closer security ties with... MORE

Withdrawal of Uzbekistan from CSTO Facilitates Kazakhstan’s Chairmanship
Bolat Baikadamov, director of the Nur Otan Parliamentary Institute, worries that “Uzbekistan’s withdrawal from the Collective Security Treaty Organization [CSTO] […] weakens both the organization and the very situation of security in the region” (Vestnik Kavkaza, July 9). But Uzbekistan’s move does not present a... MORE