Bruno Balvanera, the head of business development at the EBRD, made his comments today to Reuters. He noted that the bank's involvement in the country had been shrinking in past years as the political situation worsened and economic reforms stalled.
Meanwhile, Uzbekistan today rejected European Union criticism of the trial of 15 men convicted of organizing an uprising in May, calling it "unprecedented political pressure." The statement was posted on the website of the Uzbek Embassy in Germany.
It came after the EU last week banned entry to 12 Uzbek officials for their involvement in putting down the uprising in the eastern city of Andijon.
(Reuters/AP)
Aftermath Of Andijon
A dedicated webpage bringing together all of RFE/RL's coverage of the events in Andijon, Uzbekistan, in May 2005 and their continuing repercussions.