Uzbek president proposes setting up bloc of Central Asian states

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Sunday proposed creating a new regional co-operation body, which he called the “Community of Central Asia”, aimed at strengthening economic integration across the region’s more than 80 million people.

Speaking at a gathering in Tashkent that brought together the leaders of the five post-Soviet Central Asian republics alongside Azerbaijan, Mirziyoyev suggested turning their regular consultative meetings into a fully fledged regional organisation.

He underlined the importance of deepening economic, security, and environmental collaboration.

Central Asia, rich in minerals and energy resources, has long maintained close economic and political ties with Russia, but in recent years has attracted increasing attention from the West. China, a direct neighbour, also exerts significant commercial influence.

There was no immediate reaction from the other leaders to Mirziyoyev’s proposal, although in recent years all five countries have expressed a desire for closer regional integration, following decades in which relations were often strained.

Earlier this year, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan resolved a long-standing border dispute that had cost hundreds of lives.

All five leaders travelled to Washington together earlier this month for talks with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Mirziyoyev added separately that all five Central Asian states had voted to include Azerbaijan, a largely Muslim South Caucasus nation that lies outside Central Asia in their regular meetings.

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