Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan, is a doubly landlocked country located in Central Asia. It is surrounded by five countries: Kazakhstan to the north, Kyrgyzstan to the northeast, Tajikistan to the southeast, Afghanistan to the south, and Turkmenistan to the southwest, making it one of only two doubly landlocked countries on Earth, the other being Liechtenstein. Uzbekistan is part of the Turkic world, as well as a member of the Organization of Turkic States. Uzbek, spoken by the Uzbek people, is the official language and spoken by the majority of its inhabitants, while Russian and Tajik are significant minority languages. Islam is the predominant religion, and most Uzbeks are Sunni Muslims.
Some of the key events about Uzbekistan
- 1918Violent suppression of the Kokand Autonomy by Soviet forces
- 1937Peak of Stalin's Great Purge, resulting in mass executions and deportations in Uzbekistan
- 1960Beginning of the environmental disaster of the Aral Sea's desiccation due to Soviet irrigation policies
- 1989Violent ethnic clashes in the Fergana Valley between Uzbeks and Meskhetian Turks
- 1991Uzbekistan declared independence from the Soviet Union
- 1991Economic crisis following the dissolution of the Soviet Union
- 1992The country joined the United Nations
- 1994Uzbekistan adopted its first post-independence constitution
- 2001The country joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
- 2005Andijan massacre where government forces fired on protesters, killing hundreds
- 2007Uzbekistan became a member of the Eurasian Economic Community
- 2009The Uzbek language was officially recognized as the sole state language
- 2010Forced sterilization of women reported as part of population control measures
- 2013Widespread use of forced labor, including children, in cotton harvesting exposed
- 2016A major economic reform program was launched to liberalize the economy
- 2016Death of long-time authoritarian leader Islam Karimov, leading to political uncertainty
- 2017Uzbekistan introduced visa-free travel for citizens of several countries
- 2018The country hosted its first international investment forum
- 2020COVID-19 pandemic causes severe economic downturn and healthcare crisis in Uzbekistan
- 2021Uzbekistan was elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council
Disclaimer: This material is written based on information taken from open sources, including Wikipedia, news media, podcasts, and other public sources.
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