Uzbekistan

The trials of Tashkent's most notorious criminals go on in a blur between reports of torture in prison and incredibly mild sentences. With other prominent figures, fugitives abroad, appearing together with local politicians in the stands of major sporting events.

In Tashkent, Salim Abduvaliev, a boss who was sentenced to six years in prison in his homeland to avoid heavier sentences in Kyrgyzstan. Powerful figures with dangerous entanglements with the world of politics and sport. So much so that even the excellent arrests raise more questions than certainties about the investigations against them.

The removal of billboards covering the traditional mosaics on the facades of buildings in the Uzbek capital has become a popular event at publicity festivals. While the Council of Ministers approved a decree to include them in the list of monumental art objects to be preserved.

Two thousand participants from 80 countries attended the fourth edition of the international platform that brings together creatives, entrepreneurs and political authorities for dialogue, problem solving and the search for new development possibilities for a global creative economy, an initiative that was first proposed in Indonesia in 2018.

From education to foreign policy, the cooperation activities of the Organisation of Turkic States are growing. In the former Soviet countries of Central Asia, Erdogan is increasingly popular. While the project - already begun in Kazakhstan under Nazarbayev - to replace the Cyrillic alphabet with the Latin one, closer to Turkish phonetics, remains in force.

In view of the growing difficulties in Russia, it is becoming increasingly important to find effective alternatives, considering that money from working abroad constitutes a very important slice of the GDP of Central Asian countries, ranging from 10% in Uzbekistan to 40% in Tajikistan. An issue that is intertwined with the question of Afghans in Germany.

The region's main river flows through Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan and finally empties into the languishing Aral Sea. Its flow is steadily decreasing due to climate change but also due to intensive exploitation for agricultural purposes, aggravated by competition between individual countries. But according to experts, with bottom-up initiatives it would still be possible to snatch it from its decline.

The eldest daughter of Uzbekistan's President Mirziyoyev has continued to climb the rungs of the ladder of power in recent years, reaching the highest position after her father. Confirming the ‘tradition’ of Central Asian countries.

Today's news: Kuki drone attack on security forces in Manipur; The UN launched the anti-polio vaccination campaign in Gaza; The Japanese Defence Minister aims at a record allocation of funds for the next fiscal year; China's strengthens relations with Turkmenistan over gas deliveries.

Former Foreign Minister Kamilov analyzes Uzbekistan's role in the region from a stability and development perspective. From the closed borders of the recent past to the process of “rebooting relations,” resulting in increased trade and investment. A return to the days of the Great Silk Road.

President Mirziyoyev has made several appeals to Uzbeks abroad to invest in a "modern Uzbekistan,” but corruption remains rampant, worsen and more dangerous than in the past. Saidikrom Ahrorov, a medical engineer by training who opened the country's first disposable syringe factory, bemoans the situation.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will attend the 5+1 summit in Astana (9-12 August). He will bring a substantial aid package to support the region’s development, centred on transport and energy, particularly decarbonisation. In the background is Tokyo’s difficult relationship with Moscow and Beijing.