Islam Karimov did not trust Russia. Then why was he an ally?

Islam Karimov ruled Uzbekistan for a quarter of a century, from independence until September 2016. During Karimov's time, Uzbekistan established allied relations with only one country. And that was with the Russian Federation, in November 2005. However, Karimov was known for his distrust of Russia.

Karimov's distrust of Russia was natural. It was natural that not only Uzbekistan, but also all the new states that gained independence after the collapse of the USSR, looked at Russia with distrust and fear. Because the ideas, aspirations, and projects of restoring the USSR were strong in Russia and still exist.

Moscow did not hesitate to impose its political and geopolitical will on the newly independent states, including Uzbekistan.

In 1995, elections were held for the Russian State Duma. The Communist Party won a landslide victory in the elections. Yeltsin's pro-Russian party, Our House - Russia, received only 10 percent of the vote. In March 1996, the Duma adopted two laws on the restoration of the USSR. One was "On ensuring the integration of the peoples of the USSR" and the other "On recognizing the Belovezh Accords as invalid." Naturally, these and other moods in Russia caused concern for Uzbekistan and other newly independent states.

In 1997, Karimov wrote a book called "Uzbekistan on the Threshold of the 21st Century." This book lists seven major threats. “Regional conflicts”, “religious extremism and terrorism”, “great state chauvinism and aggressive nationalism”, “ethnic and interethnic conflicts”, “corruption and crime”, “localism and tribalism” and “ecological problems” are mentioned.

In short, Karimov says that regional conflicts, as well as extremism and terrorism, worry Uzbekistan, but what worries us most and poses a real threat to our independence is chauvinism, aggressive nationalism, imperialism, and he mentions only Russia. The third section of the book is devoted exclusively to threats from Russia.

If we summarize Karimov’s thoughts, the following conclusions can be drawn: there are forces and moods in the Russian political elite, in the special services, in the structure of the state that look down on independent states, see them as parts of their empire, always want to keep them in a dependent state, and if possible, want to restore their empires again. In order to maintain its influence and pressure, Russia is thinking of playing with the borders of new states, and wants to implement its projects by inciting, instigating, and mediating interethnic conflicts. Russian imperialism also tried to create an inferiority complex in the Uzbek people and local peoples, and instilled a spirit of "backwardness."

Since the mid-1990s, Uzbekistan has been moving away from Russia and strengthening ties with Western countries, primarily the United States. After September 11, 2001, relations with the United States changed dramatically. Uzbekistan agreed to use its territory as a transit for US operations in Afghanistan. A military base in Karshi was provided, where it is said that about 1,500-5,000 soldiers served.

In March 2002, Karimov signed the "Declaration of Strategic Partnership" with George Bush in Washington. According to the declaration, “the United States views with the utmost concern any threat to the security and territorial integrity of Uzbekistan.”

However, during 2003-05, a series of events caused Karimov to distance himself from the West. In particular, in November 2003, a revolution took place in Georgia. Mass demonstrations that began in November 2004 led to a change of power in Ukraine by January 2005. In March 2005, Askar Akayev was overthrown in neighboring Kyrgyzstan. In addition, the expected investments from the United States did not come to Uzbekistan. In December 2003, Uzbekistan asked to reconsider the agreement on the base in Karshi, raising this issue six times in total. The United States responded that “there was no need for this.”

Against the backdrop of color revolutions and the lack of significant financial investments from the United States, Karimov began to approach Russia. In June 2004, Uzbekistan signed a “Strategic Partnership” agreement with Russia. The agreement stipulated the joint use of military infrastructure and the transfer of large gas fields in Uzbekistan to Lukoil.

However, Uzbekistan’s relations with the West deteriorated sharply after the Andijan events of May 2005. Western countries did not support the government’s version and demanded an international investigation. On July 29, 2005, Karimov demanded the closure of the US military base within 180 days. The reasons given were the US’s failure to pay rent and the significant environmental damage.

In September 2005, military exercises with the Russian Federation were held. These were the first joint military exercises since the collapse of the USSR. In November 2005, Uzbekistan concluded an agreement with the Russian Federation on “Allied Relations”. In January 2006, Uzbekistan returned to the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

After Karimov stabilized the political system, Uzbekistan began to distance itself from Russia again in 2007-09. It withdrew from the CSTO again in 2012.

What does Karimov’s alliance with Russia indicate? Violation of human rights leads to an imbalance. The lack of freedom of conscience and religious freedoms caused major upheavals in the state’s domestic and foreign policy, and a major blow to Uzbekistan’s status in the region and international prestige.

There is a legitimate connection between human rights, religious freedoms, and the harmonious functioning of democratic institutions and the state's reputation in the international arena. Denying this legitimacy leads to mistakes and tragedies.

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