By Denis Korkodinov
Prior to Donald Trump, the Central Asian region was not of significant interest to the United States. However, after the death of Uzbek President Islam Karimov and recent social unrest in Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia is rapidly gaining high positions in the foreign policy of the White House administration. In addition, countering the nuclear threat from Iran and North Korea, as well as exerting pressure on Afghanistan, is forcing Washington to seek new venues to advance its interests. Two such platforms for American interests are Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
As a result of the death of the Uzbek leader Islam Karimov, his successor Shavkat Mirziyoyev refused to implement a number of ambitious projects of his predecessor and focused on the policy of ensuring a balance of interests in relations with international partners. To this end, the main efforts of Tashkent were aimed at smoothing out sharp corners in the negotiation process with world powers: Russia, the USA and China.
Among other things, the country has undergone significant reforms related to the amnesty of political prisoners, the weakening of censorship, which was to demonstrate to the international community the ability of Uzbekistan to be a “democratic country.” Of course, such innovations have helped Tashkent attract the attention of the White House administration, which began to consider Uzbekistan as a potential platform for “exporting the American model of democracy.”
At the same time, Kazakhstan also began to demonstrate to the United States its readiness for political transformations. In particular, the decision of Kazakh leader Nursultan Nazarbayev to approve a parliamentary form of government opened the way for Washington to more actively push its groups of influence on the political front of Kazakhstan.
In turn, Moscow is trying to keep up with the United States in the process of influencing the countries of Central Asia. So, through these states, Russia seeks to create a buffer that separates it from the “Islamic State”. And although the degree of military participation of Moscow in this region is rapidly declining, nevertheless, it is still able to compete with the United States in the near future.
Meanwhile, the Donald Trump administration is trying to actively promote the aspirations of the new Uzbek leader, aimed at reconstructing his political system. In addition, Washington is increasingly beginning to intervene in the reform activities of the President of Kazakhstan. Widely presenting such support and providing the Central Asian countries with weapons to fight terrorism, the United States, of course, is making some progress, leaving Moscow an outsider.
Through Uzbekistan, Washington is trying, among other things, to put pressure on the Islamic State, Afghanistan and Pakistan. So, the structure of ISIS is quite widely represented by Uzbek militants who somehow maintain ties with their homeland. In addition, the so-called “Islamic State of Uzbekistan” operates in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is in opposition to the regimes operating in these countries, and in the case of “special interest” on the part of the United States may well cause an escalation of the conflict in Kabul and Islamabad.
(The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of World Geostrategic Insights)
Image Credit: MFA (Foreign Minister of Uzbekistan Abdulaziz Kamilov received the US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale)