Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit Uzbekistan on October 18-19. It is Putin’s first official visit to Uzbekistan since Shavkat Mirziyoev became president at the end of 2016.
Uzbekistan’s relations with Russia were often poor during Islam Karimov’s 25 years as Uzbekistan’s leader. But Uzbek-Russian ties are much better since Mirziyoev took over and some people are wondering just how far this new relationship could go.
On this week's Majlis podcast, RFE/RL's media-relations manager, Muhammad Tahir, moderates a discussion on Putin’s visit and recent developments in Uzbek-Russian affairs.
Participating from Almaty, Kazakhstan, is Joanna Lillis, a veteran journalist who covers Central Asia for EurasiaNet and the author of a soon-to-be-released book about Kazakhstan, Dark Shadows.
From the University of Exeter in Britain, another veteran Central Asia watcher, David Lewis, weighs in.
From RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service, known locally as Ozodlik, Sirojiddin Tolibov takes part. And I jump in with a few thoughts, too.
Listen to the podcast above or subscribe to the Majlis on iTunes.
