Shavkat Mirziyoyev

A first-of-its-kind Central Asian summit boosts regional connectivity and authoritarian domestic agendas.

As the new administration charts its foreign policy course, a stronger Central Asia-U.S. partnership can serve as a model for mutually beneficial cooperation.

The messages provide a glimpse as to what the Central Asian states wish to see from the next U.S. administration and how they aim to position themselves.

From tackling corruption to enhancing public services, people of Uzbekistan are clear about their priorities.

The sixth consultative meeting of the Central Asian leaders concluded without a major breakthrough, but recent Kazakh-Uzbek bilateral agreements could be the key to deepening cooperation in the region.

An optimal way of mitigating the challenges Central Asia faces, Mirziyoyev argued, is regional integration. 

Despite presidential promises, arrests of bloggers critical of the government highlight the fragility of free speech in Mirziyoyev's Uzbekistan.

With so many activists in Uzbekistan once again behind bars, the president’s promises of reform ring increasingly hollow.

While some progress has been made, foreign investors are starting to wonder if Uzbekistan’s privatization agenda will ever live up to its much-lauded potential. 

Five years in jail for criticizing Mirziyoyev’s attending a military parade in Moscow, two and half for a vulgar comment on Instagram, seven for a derogatory poem.

Thousands were imprisoned under the regime of Islam Karimov, unjustly convicted on religious extremism and other charges. Many have been freed, but they remain unexonerated. 

"While it is undeniable that Mirziyoyev’s Uzbekistan is less paranoid, much freer and tolerant than Karimov’s... the very nature of the system remains unchanged."

France's strategic moves in Central Asia, exemplified by Macron's recent visit to Uzbekistan, are driven by myriad factors.

Germany’s key role is in helping Central Asia reduce its reliance on Russian and Chinese investments and, more significantly, trade.

Despite the modest progress achieved under Uzbek leadership, there are still numerous challenges to Central Asian regionalism.

Uzbekistan is a bedrock U.S. partner in a dynamic region.

The state seems to aim for branding Uzbekistan as dynamic. Its approach to free speech is anything but.

With 87 percent of the votes in a campaign devoid of genuine competition, the Uzbek president has cemented himself in power much like his predecessor.

There have been some areas of progress on human rights under Mirziyoyev but the country’s international partners should recognize that these gains have now halted and gone into reverse.

Since 2016, Mirziyoyev’s reforms have often served two purposes: a populist aim paired with an overriding interest in regime security.

Karakalpakstan has a constitutional right to secede from Uzbekistan via referendum, but calling for such a vote results in immense pressure and often prison terms.

Five parties have nominated four candidates, but only one has any chance at 'winning' Uzbekistan's July 9 snap presidential election.

Tashkent's readouts of the president's meetings in Berlin highlight the quest for "multifaceted" cooperation.

With Karimovesque numbers and a lack of open debate or opposition, Mirziyoyev's constitution was approved in Uzbekistan.