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119-536: 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

238-643: A republic of the Soviet Union . It declared independence as the Republic of Uzbekistan in 1991. Uzbekistan is a secular state , with a semi-presidential constitutional government. Uzbekistan comprises 12 regions (vilayats), Tashkent City, and one autonomous republic, Karakalpakstan . While non-governmental organisations have defined Uzbekistan as "an authoritarian state with limited civil rights ", significant reforms under Uzbekistan's second president, Shavkat Mirziyoyev , have been made following

357-667: A blurred boundary between democracy and authoritarianism have some times been characterized as "hybrid democracies", " hybrid regimes " or "competitive authoritarian" states. The political scientist Juan Linz , in an influential 1964 work, An Authoritarian Regime: Spain , defined authoritarianism as possessing four qualities: Minimally defined, an authoritarian government lacks free and competitive direct elections to legislatures , free and competitive direct or indirect elections for executives , or both. Broadly defined, authoritarian states include countries that lack human rights such as freedom of religion , or countries in which

476-638: A border with a coastal country but any path to a coast would still lead across at least two borders. The Free City of Frankfurt which was independent between 1815 and 1866 was doubly landlocked as it bordered the Electorate of Hesse , the Grand Duchy of Hesse , Hesse-Homburg , and Nassau . In the German Confederation there were several other landlocked states that only bordered landlocked states and landlocked exclaves of coastal states:

595-479: A catastrophic scenario with the agricultural industry being the main contributor to the pollution and devastation of both air and water in the country. The Aral Sea was once the fourth-largest inland sea on Earth, humidifying the surrounding air and irrigating the arid land. Since the 1960s, when the overuse of the Aral Sea water began, it has shrunk to about 10% of its former area and divided into parts, with only

714-537: A country's development. It cuts a nation off from important sea resources such as fishing , and impedes or prevents direct access to maritime trade , a crucial component of economic and social advance. As such, coastal regions, or inland regions that have access to the World Ocean, tended to be wealthier and more heavily populated than inland regions that have no access to the World Ocean. Paul Collier in his book The Bottom Billion argues that being landlocked in

833-439: A democracy). Eva Bellin argues that under certain circumstances the bourgeoise and labor are more likely to favor democratization, but less so under other circumstances. Economic development can boost public support for authoritarian regimes in the short-to-medium term. According to Michael Albertus, most land reform programs tend to be implemented by authoritarian regimes that subsequently withhold property rights from

952-409: A high risk of exile or imprisonment and "democratic procedures are sufficiently meaningful for opposition groups to take them seriously as arenas through which to contest for power." Competitive authoritarian regimes lack one or more of the three characteristics of democracies such as free elections (i.e. elections untainted by substantial fraud or voter intimidation); protection of civil liberties (i.e.

1071-422: A lack of independent third parties empowered to settle disputes between the dictator, regime allies, regime soldiers and the masses. Authoritarians may resort to measures referred to as coup-proofing (structures that make it hard for any small group to seize power). Coup-proofing strategies include strategically placing family, ethnic, and religious groups in the military; creating of an armed force parallel to

1190-623: A lesser extent Kyrgyzstan ). When the U.S. joined in a call for an independent international investigation of the bloody events at Andijan , the relationship further declined, and President Islam Karimov changed the political alignment of the country to bring it closer to Russia and China. In late July 2005, the government of Uzbekistan ordered the United States to vacate an airbase in Karshi-Kanabad (near Uzbekistan's border with Afghanistan) within 180 days. Karimov had offered use of

1309-611: A low GDP per capita . Uzbekistan is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), United Nations (UN) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The name "Uzbegistán" appears in the 16th century Tarikh-i Rashidi . The origin of the word Uzbek remains disputed. All three have the middle syllable/phoneme being cognate with the Turkic title Beg . The name of the country

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1428-538: A means of control. Authoritarians increasingly seek to create an appearance of good performance, conceal state repression, and imitate democracy. While authoritarian regimes invest considerably in propaganda out of a belief that it enhances regime survival, scholars have offered mixed views as to whether propaganda is effective. Andrew J. Nathan notes that "regime theory holds that authoritarian systems are inherently fragile because of weak legitimacy, overreliance on coercion, over- centralization of decision making, and

1547-716: A part of the Persian empire of the day. Before the arrival of the Russians, present-day Uzbekistan was divided between the Emirate of Bukhara and the khanates of Khiva and Kokand . In the 19th century, the Russian Empire began to expand and spread into Central Asia . There were 210,306 Russians living in Uzbekistan in 1912. The " Great Game " period is generally regarded as running from approximately 1813 to

1666-443: A poor geographical neighbourhood is one of four major development "traps" by which a country can be held back. In general, he found that when a neighbouring country experiences better growth, it tends to spill over into favorable development for the country itself. For landlocked countries, the effect is particularly strong, as they are limited in their trading activity with the rest of the world. He states, "If you are coastal, you serve

1785-484: A quarter of its military budget), the government of Uzbekistan has recently restricted American military use of the airbase at Karshi-Khanabad for air operations in neighbouring Afghanistan. Uzbekistan was an active supporter of U.S. efforts against worldwide terrorism. The relationship between Uzbekistan and the United States began to deteriorate after the so-called " colour revolutions " in Georgia and Ukraine (and to

1904-628: A region. A 2017 study finds that countries' coup-proofing strategies are heavily influenced by other countries with similar histories. A 2018 study in the Journal of Peace Research found that leaders who survive coup attempts and respond by purging known and potential rivals are likely to have longer tenures as leaders. A 2019 study in Conflict Management and Peace Science found that personalist dictatorships are more likely to take coup-proofing measures than other authoritarian regimes;

2023-455: A rich Perso-Islamic culture. During his reign and the reigns of his immediate descendants, a wide range of religious and palatial construction masterpieces were undertaken in Samarkand and other population centres. Tamerlane also established an exchange of medical discoveries and patronised physicians, scientists and artists from the neighbouring regions such as India; His grandson Ulugh Beg

2142-579: A strong, charismatic, manipulative leader rules through a coalition involving key lower-class groups." Examples include Argentina under Juan Perón , Egypt under Gamal Abdel Nasser and Venezuela under Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro . A typology of authoritarian regimes by political scientists Brian Lai and Dan Slater includes four categories: Lai and Slater argue that single-party regimes are better than military regimes at developing institutions (e.g. mass mobilization , patronage networks and coordination of elites) that are effective at continuing

2261-749: A variety of actors (in Spain's case, including the military, the Catholic Church , Falange , monarchists , technocrats and others). Unlike totalitarian states, the regime relies on passive mass acceptance rather than popular support. According to Juan Linz the distinction between an authoritarian regime and a totalitarian one is that an authoritarian regime seeks to suffocate politics and political mobilization while totalitarianism seeks to control and use them. Authoritarianism primarily differs from totalitarianism in that social and economic institutions exist that are not under governmental control. Building on

2380-541: A variety of roles, including "operating manual" (describing how the government is to function); "billboard" (signal of regime's intent), "blueprint" (outline of future regime plans), and "window dressing" (material designed to obfuscate, such as provisions setting forth freedoms that are not honored in practice). Authoritarian constitutions may help legitimize, strengthen, and consolidate regimes. An authoritarian constitution "that successfully coordinates government action and defines popular expectations can also help consolidate

2499-479: A way that reinforces their power. Authoritarian legislatures, for example, are forums through which leaders may enhance their bases of support, share power, and monitor elites. Additionally, authoritarian party systems are extremely unstable and unconducive to party development, largely due to monopolistic patterns of authority. Judiciaries may be present in authoritarian states where they serve to repress political challengers, institutionalize punishment, and undermine

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2618-754: Is "doubly landlocked" or "double-landlocked" when it is surrounded entirely by landlocked countries (i.e. requiring the crossing of at least two national borders to reach a coastline). There are two such countries: After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire , the Kingdom of Württemberg became a doubly landlocked state, bordering Bavaria , Baden , Switzerland , the Grand Duchy of Hesse ( Wimpfen exclave), Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen , and Hohenzollern-Hechingen . The latter two were themselves landlocked between each other, Württemberg, and Baden. In 1866 they became an exclave of Prussia , giving Württemberg

2737-670: Is "self-appointed and even if elected cannot be displaced by citizens' free choice among competitors", the arbitrary deprivation of civil liberties and little tolerance for meaningful opposition . A range of social controls also attempt to stifle civil society while political stability is maintained by control over and support of the armed forces , a bureaucracy staffed by the regime and creation of allegiance through various means of socialization and indoctrination. Pippa Norris and Ronald Inglehart identify authoritarianism in politicians and political parties by looking for values of security, conformity, and obedience. Authoritarianism

2856-581: Is a label used by various political scientists to characterize the most tyrannical strain of authoritarian systems; in which the ruling elite, often subservient to a dictator , exert near-total control of the social, political, economic, cultural and religious aspects of society in the territories under its governance. Linz distinguished new forms of authoritarianism from personalistic dictatorships and totalitarian states, taking Francoist Spain as an example. Unlike personalistic dictatorships, new forms of authoritarianism have institutionalized representation of

2975-499: Is generally only regarding grievances that do not undermine the stability of the regime. An illiberal democracy , or procedural democracy , is distinguished from liberal democracy , or substantive democracy , in that illiberal democracies lack features such as the rule of law , protections for minority groups , an independent judiciary and the real separation of powers . A further distinction that liberal democracies have rarely made war with one another; research has extended

3094-404: Is marked by "indefinite political tenure" of the ruler or ruling party (often in a one-party state ) or other authority. The transition from an authoritarian system to a more democratic form of government is referred to as democratization . Authoritarian regimes often adopt "the institutional trappings" of democracies such as constitutions . Constitutions in authoritarian states may serve

3213-600: Is opposed to reintegration and withdrew from the CIS collective security arrangement in 1999. Since that time, Uzbekistan has participated in the CIS peacekeeping force in Tajikistan and in UN-organized groups to help resolve the Tajikistan and Afghanistan conflicts, both of which it sees as posing threats to its own stability. Previously close to Washington (which gave Uzbekistan half a billion dollars in aid in 2004, about

3332-744: 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 . The first recorded settlers in the land of what is modern Uzbekistan were Eastern Iranian nomads , known as Scythians , who founded kingdoms in Khwarazm , Bactria , and Sogdia in

3451-485: Is usually not considered a continent but a geographical region by the English-speaking countries ) also has no landlocked countries. All landlocked countries, except Bolivia and Paraguay , are located on the continental mainland of Afro-Eurasia . Authoritarianism List of forms of government Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality ,

3570-737: The Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers, was conquered by the Arabs ( Qutayba ibn Muslim ), becoming a focal point soon after the Islamic Golden Age . In the ninth and tenth centuries, Transoxiana was brought into the Samanid State. In the tenth century it was gradually dominated by the Turkic-ruled Karakhanids , as well as their Seljuk (Sultan Sanjar) overseer's. The Mongol conquest under Genghis Khan during

3689-551: The Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907 . A second, less intensive phase followed the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. At the start of the 19th century, there were some 3,200 kilometres (2,000 mi) separating British India and the outlying regions of Tsarist Russia . Much of the land between was unmapped. In the early 1890s, Sven Hedin passed through Uzbekistan, during his first expedition. By

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3808-479: The Aral Sea . He also invaded Russia before dying during an invasion of China in 1405. Timur was also known for his extreme brutality and his conquests were accompanied by genocidal massacres in the cities he occupied. Timur initiated the last flowering of Transoxiana by gathering together numerous artisans and scholars from the vast lands he had conquered into his capital, Samarkand, thus imbuing his empire with

3927-771: The Baltic Sea , Black Sea , and Pacific Ocean . On the other hand, some landlocked countries can have access to the ocean along wide navigable rivers. For instance, Paraguay (and Bolivia to a lesser extent) have access to the ocean through the Paraguay and Paraná rivers. Several countries have coastlines on landlocked bodies of water, such as the Caspian Sea and the Dead Sea . Since these seas are in effect lakes without access to wider seaborne trade, countries such as Kazakhstan are still considered landlocked. Although

4046-539: The CIS countries, it is the fourth largest by area and the second largest by population. Uzbekistan lies between latitudes 37° and 46° N , and longitudes 56° and 74° E . It stretches 1,425 kilometres (885 mi) from west to east and 930 kilometres (580 mi) from north to south. Bordering Kazakhstan and the Aralkum Desert (former Aral Sea ) to the north and northwest, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan to

4165-458: The December 2016 presidential election , winning 88.6% of the vote, and was sworn in on 14 December. Deputy Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov replaced him as prime minister. Mirziyoyev removed most of Karimov's officials and urged the government to employ "new, young people who love their country." After a year in office, Mirziyoyev moved away from many of his predecessor's policies. He visited all

4284-545: The Grand Duchy of Hesse , Hesse-Homburg , Nassau (all until 1866), Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld , Saxe-Hildburghausen (both until 1826), and Reuss, elder line (until 1871). All of these bordered Prussia but not the main territory with sea access. There were no doubly landlocked countries from the unification of Germany in 1871 until the end of World War I . Liechtenstein bordered the Austro-Hungarian Empire , which had an Adriatic coastline, and Uzbekistan

4403-522: The Oliy Majlis appointed Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyoyev as interim president. Although the chairman of the Senate, Nigmatilla Yuldashev , was constitutionally designated as Karimov's successor, Yuldashev proposed that Mirziyoyev take the post of the interim president instead in light of Mirziyoyev's "many years of experience". Mirziyoyev was subsequently elected as the country's second president in

4522-686: The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). It belongs to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) (comprising the five Central Asian countries, Azerbaijan , Iran, Turkey, Afghanistan, and Pakistan). In 1999, Uzbekistan joined the GUAM alliance (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova ), which was formed in 1997 (making it GUUAM), but pulled out of

4641-466: The Russian Empire and then the Soviet Union , gained its independence with the dissolution of the latter in 1991 and became the second doubly landlocked country. However, Uzbekistan's doubly landlocked status depends on whether the Caspian Sea is considered a lake or a sea. In the latter case, Uzbekistan is not doubly landlocked, since its neighbors Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan have access to

4760-669: The Silk Road , and became a center of the Islamic Golden Age . The local Khwarazmian dynasty was destroyed by the Mongol invasion in the 13th century, leading to a dominance by Mongol peoples. Timur (Tamerlane) in the 14th century established the Timurid Empire . Its capital was Samarkand , which became a centre of science under the rule of Ulugh Beg , giving birth to the Timurid Renaissance . The territories of

4879-740: The Sound Dues , a toll needed to be paid to reach Western European waters. Sweden bypassed it by conquering Scania in 1658. Landlocked countries may be bordered by a single country having direct access to the high seas , two or more such countries, or be surrounded by other landlocked countries, making a country doubly landlocked. Three countries are landlocked by a single country ( enclaved countries): Seven landlocked countries are surrounded by only two mutually bordering neighbours (semi-enclaved countries): To this group could be added three landlocked territories, two of them de facto states with limited or no international recognition : A country

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4998-534: The Soviet Union in 1991, an election was held, and Islam Karimov was elected as the first President of Uzbekistan on 29 December 1991. The elections of the Oliy Majlis (Parliament or Supreme Assembly) were held under a resolution adopted by the 16th Supreme Soviet in 1994. In that year, the Supreme Soviet was replaced by the Oliy Majlis. The third elections for the bicameral 150-member Oliy Majlis,

5117-687: The Timurid dynasty were conquered by Kipchak Shaybanids in the 16th century. Conquests by Emperor Babur towards the east led to the foundation of the Mughal Empire in India. Most of Central Asia was gradually incorporated into the Russian Empire during the 19th century, with Tashkent becoming the political center of Russian Turkestan . In 1924, national delimitation created the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic as

5236-459: The World Bank suggests that political institutions are extremely important in determining the prevalence of corruption and that parliamentary systems, political stability and freedom of the press are all associated with lower corruption. A 2006 study by economist Alberto Abadie has concluded that terrorism is most common in nations with intermediate political freedom . The nations with

5355-736: The failed coup attempt in Moscow. 1 September was proclaimed National Independence Day. The Soviet Union was dissolved on 26 December of that year. Islam Karimov , previously first secretary of the Communist Party of Uzbekistan since 1989, was elected president of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic in 1990. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, he was elected president of independent Uzbekistan. An authoritarian ruler, Karimov died in September 2016. He

5474-483: The 13th century brought change to the region. The invasions of Bukhara, Samarkand, Urgench and others resulted in mass murders and unprecedented destruction, which saw parts of Khwarezmia being completely razed. Following the death of Genghis Khan in 1227, his empire was divided among his four sons and his family members. Despite the potential for serious fragmentation, there was an orderly succession for several generations, and control of most of Transoxiana stayed in

5593-542: The 1990s, most of these elections had no alternative parties or candidates for voters to choose. Since the end of the Cold War, about two-thirds of elections in authoritarian systems allow for some opposition, but the elections are structured in a way to heavily favor the incumbent authoritarian regime. In 2020, almost half of all authoritarian systems had multi-party governments. Cabinet appointments by an authoritarian regime to outsiders can consolidate their rule by dividing

5712-503: The 22nd Congress of the Communist Party). However, in 2023, two mountaineers successfully summited the neighboring Alpomish peak, which they measured to be 4,668 metres (15,315 ft), 25 m higher than Khazret Sultan. The climate in Uzbekistan is continental, with little precipitation expected annually (100–200 millimetres, or 3.9–7.9 inches). The average summer high temperature tends to be 40 °C (104 °F) , while

5831-763: The 45 landlocked countries, including those in Africa , Asia , and South America , have been classified as Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) by the United Nations . Nine of the twelve countries with the lowest Human Development Index rankings are landlocked. International initiatives are aimed at reducing inequalities resulting from issues such as these, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 10 , which aims to reduce inequality substantially by 2030. In 1990, there were only 30 landlocked countries in

5950-654: The 8th–6th centuries BC, as well as Fergana and Margiana in the 3rd century BC – 6th century AD. The area was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire and, after a period of Greco-Bactrian rule and later by the Sasanian Empire , until the Muslim conquest of Persia in the seventh century. The early Muslim conquests and the subsequent Samanid Empire converted most of the people into adherents of Islam . During this period, cities began to grow rich from

6069-515: The Aral Sea. The bulk of the nation's water resources is used for farming, which accounts for nearly 84% of the water use and contributes to high soil salinity . Heavy use of pesticides and fertilisers for cotton growing further aggravates soil contamination . According to the UNDP (United Nations Development Program), climate risk management in Uzbekistan should consider its ecological safety. Numerous oil and gas deposits have been discovered in

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6188-583: The Caspian Sea is connected to the Black Sea via the man-made Volga–Don Canal , large oceangoing ships are unable to traverse it. Some countries or important parts of countries have coastlines or river ports reachable by oceangoing ships, but only through a strait or river part of the territory of another country. The other country can put restriction on passage. Between 1429 and 1857 Poland , Sweden , Russia and more Baltic countries were suffering from

6307-597: The Caspian Sea. Notes: The landlocked countries and de facto states can be grouped in contiguous groups as follows: Notes: There are the following 12 "single" landlocked countries (each of them borders no other landlocked country or de facto state): According to the United Nations geoscheme (excluding the de facto states ), Africa has the most landlocked countries, at 16, followed by Europe (14), Asia (12), and South America (2). However, if Armenia , Azerbaijan , Kazakhstan , and South Ossetia (de facto state) are counted as parts of Europe, then Europe has

6426-596: The German side . As many as 263,005 Uzbek soldiers died in the battlefields of the Eastern Front , and 32,670 went missing in action. During the Soviet-Afghan War , a number of Uzbek troops fought in neighbouring Afghanistan . At least 1,500 lost their lives and thousands more paralysed. On 20 June 1990, Uzbekistan declared its state sovereignty. On 31 August 1991, Uzbekistan declared independence after

6545-719: The Great conquered the Persian Empire provinces of Sogdiana and Bactria, which contained the territories of modern Uzbekistan. Popular resistance to the conquest was fierce, causing Alexander's army to be bogged down in the region that became the northern part of the Macedonian Greco-Bactrian Kingdom . The kingdom was replaced with the Yuezhi-dominated Kushan Empire in the first century BC. For many centuries thereafter

6664-544: The Legislative Chamber, and the 100-member Senate for five-year terms, were held on 27 December 2009. The second elections were held from December 2004 to January 2005. The Oliy Majlis was unicameral up to 2004. Its size increased from 69 deputies (members) in 1994 to 120 in 2004–05 and currently stands at 150. Karimov's first presidential term was extended to 2000 via a referendum , and he was re-elected in 2000 , 2007 , and 2015, each time receiving over 90% of

6783-491: The Southern United States after Reconstruction , as well as areas of contemporary Argentina and Mexico. Another type of authoritarian regime is the competitive authoritarian regime, a type of civilian regime that arose in the post-Cold War era. In a competitive authoritarian regime, "formal democratic institutions exist and are widely viewed as the primary means of gaining power, but ... incumbents' abuse of

6902-608: The Soviet era, is considered one of the world's worst environmental disasters. The rest is the vast Kyzylkum Desert and mountains. According to a 1981 Soviet study, the highest point in Uzbekistan is Khazret Sultan at 4,643 metres (15,233 ft) above sea level, in the southern part of the Gissar Range in the Surxondaryo Region on the border with Tajikistan, just northwest of Dushanbe (formerly called Peak of

7021-543: The Uzbek regions and big cities to get acquainted with the implementation of the projects and reforms which he ordered. Many analysts and Western media compared his rule with Chinese Communist Party leader Deng Xiaoping or Soviet Communist Party general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev . His rule has been quoted as being an "Uzbek Spring". Uzbekistan joined the Commonwealth of Independent States in December 1991. However, it

7140-483: The authoritarian regime. Adam Przeworski has challenged this, noting that while authoritarian regimes do take actions that serve to enhance regime survival, they also engage in mundane everyday governance and their subjects do not hold a posture towards the regime at all moments of their life. He writes, "People in autocracies do not incessantly live under the shadow of dramatic historical events; they lead everyday routine lives." Similarly, Thomas Pepinsky has challenged

7259-653: The authoritarian tendency to respond to challenges by exerting tighter control, instead of by adapting, may compromise the legitimacy of an authoritarian state and lead to its collapse. One exception to this general trend is the endurance of the authoritarian rule of the Chinese Communist Party which has been unusually resilient among authoritarian regimes. Nathan posits that this can be attributed to four factors such as (1) "the increasingly norm-bound nature of its succession politics"; (2) "the increase in meritocratic as opposed to factional considerations in

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7378-716: The authors argue that this is because "personalists are characterized by weak institutions and narrow support bases, a lack of unifying ideologies and informal links to the ruler." According to a 2019 study, personalist dictatorships are more repressive than other forms of dictatorship. According to Yale professor Juan José Linz there a three main types of political regimes today: democracies , totalitarian regimes and, sitting between these two, authoritarian regimes (with hybrid regimes ). According to University of Michigan professor Dan Slater, modern forms of authoritarianism are fundamentally dissimilar from historical forms of nondemocratic rule. He links modern authoritarianism to

7497-478: The average winter low temperature is around −23 °C (−9 °F) . Uzbekistan is home to six terrestrial ecoregions: Alai-Western Tian Shan steppe , Gissaro-Alai open woodlands , Badghyz and Karabil semi-desert , Central Asian northern desert , Central Asian riparian woodlands , and Central Asian southern desert . Uzbekistan has a rich and diverse natural environment. However, decades of Soviet policies in pursuit of greater cotton production have resulted in

7616-412: The base to the U.S. shortly after 9/11 . It is also believed by some Uzbeks that the protests in Andijan were brought about by the UK and U.S. influences in the area of Andijan. This is another reason for the hostility between Uzbekistan and the West. Uzbekistan is a member of the United Nations (UN) (since 2 March 1992), the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC), Partnership for Peace (PfP), and

7735-423: The beginning of 1920, Central Asia was firmly in the hands of Russia and, despite some early resistance to the Bolsheviks , Uzbekistan and the rest of Central Asia became a part of the Soviet Union . On 27 October 1924 the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic was created. From 1941 to 1945, during World War II , 1,433,230 people from Uzbekistan fought in the Red Army against Nazi Germany . A number also fought on

7854-571: The beneficiaries of the land reform. Authoritarian regimes do so to gain coercive leverage over rural populations. Authoritarian regimes typically incorporate similar political institutions to that of democratic regimes, such as legislatures and judiciaries, although they may serve different purposes. Democratic regimes are marked by institutions that are essential to economic development and individual freedom, including representative legislatures and competitive political parties. Most authoritarian regimes embrace these political structures, but use it in

7973-413: The birthplace, home, and capital of Tamerlane . Under Tamerlane, the region was a part of the Timurid Empire which extended from the Black Sea to the Arabian Sea , and to just outside of Delhi, India The first people known to have inhabited Central Asia were Scythians who came from the northern grasslands of what is now Uzbekistan, sometime in the first millennium BC; when these nomads settled in

8092-445: The common mental image of an authoritarian state as one of grim totalitarianism, desperate hardship, strict censorship, and dictatorial orders of murder, torture and disappearances. He writes, "life in authoritarian states is mostly boring and tolerable." Yale University political scientist Milan Svolik argues that violence is a common characteristic of authoritarian systems. Violence tends to be common in authoritarian states because of

8211-497: The concept to that of hybrid regimes . Scholars such as Seymour Lipset , Carles Boix, Susan Stokes , Dietrich Rueschemeyer, Evelyne Stephens and John Stephens argue that economic development increases the likelihood of democratization. Adam Przeworski and Fernando Limongi argue that while economic development makes democracies less likely to turn authoritarian, there is insufficient evidence to conclude that development causes democratization (turning an authoritarian state into

8330-554: The country's currency became fully convertible at market rates. Uzbekistan is a major producer and exporter of cotton . With the gigantic power-generation facilities from the Soviet era and an ample supply of natural gas , Uzbekistan has become the largest electricity producer in Central Asia. From 2018 to 2021, the republic received a BB− sovereign credit rating by both Standard and Poor (S&P) and Fitch Ratings . The Brookings Institution described Uzbekistan as having large liquid assets, high economic growth, low public debt , and

8449-403: The current responsible Undersecretary-General is Anwarul Karim Chowdhury . Some countries have a long coastline, but much of it may not be readily usable for trade and commerce. For instance, in its early history, Russia 's only ports were on the Arctic Ocean and frozen shut for much of the year. The wish to gain control of a warm-water port was a major motivator of Russian expansion towards

8568-544: The death of Timur. The chronic internal fighting of the Timurids attracted the attention of the Uzbek nomadic tribes living to the north of the Aral Sea. In 1501, the Uzbek forces began a wholesale invasion of Transoxiana. The slave trade in the Emirate of Bukhara became prominent and was firmly established at this time. The Khanate of Bukhara was eventually invaded by the foreign government of Persia in 1510, and then became

8687-508: The death of the first president, Islam Karimov . Owing to these reforms, relations with the neighbouring countries of Kyrgyzstan , Tajikistan , and Afghanistan have drastically improved. A United Nations report of 2020 found much progress toward achieving the UN's Sustainable Development Goals . The Uzbek economy is in a gradual transition to the market economy , with foreign trade policy being based on import substitution . In September 2017,

8806-438: The drawing of election districts and the creation of party lists to ensure as best it can that it will prevail – and by a substantial margin"; (5) reflect at least occasional responsiveness to public opinion; and (6) create "mechanisms to ensure that the amount of dissent does not exceed the level it regards as desirable." Tushnet cites Singapore as an example of an authoritarian constitutionalist state, and connects

8925-574: The era of mass politics , which began with the French Revolution . Several subtypes of authoritarian regimes have been identified by Linz and others. Linz identified the two most basic subtypes as traditional authoritarian regimes and bureaucratic-military authoritarian regimes: According to Barbara Geddes , there are seven typologies of authoritarian regimes: dominant party regimes, military regime, personalist regimes, monarchies, oligarchic regimes, indirect military regimes, or hybrids of

9044-406: The exclusion of potential or supposed challengers by armed force. It uses political parties and mass organizations to mobilize people around the goals of the regime. Adam Przeworski has theorized that "authoritarian equilibrium rests mainly on lies, fear and economic prosperity." Authoritarianism also tends to embrace the informal and unregulated exercise of political power , a leadership that

9163-540: The existence of left-wing authoritarianism as a psychological construct has been criticised, a study found evidence for both left-wing and right-wing authoritarianism. Authoritarianism and democracy are not necessarily fundamental opposites and may be thought of as poles at opposite ends of a scale, so that it is possible for some democracies to possess authoritarian elements, and for an authoritarian system to have democratic elements. Authoritarian regimes may also be partly responsive to citizen grievances, although this

9282-636: The first three. Subtypes of authoritarian regimes identified by Linz are corporatist or organic-statistic, racial and ethnic "democracy" and post-totalitarian. Authoritarian regimes are also sometimes subcategorized by whether they are more personalistic or populist . Personalistic authoritarian regimes are characterized by arbitrary rule and authority exercised "mainly through patronage networks and coercion rather than through institutions and formal rules." Personalistic authoritarian regimes have been seen in post-colonial Africa. By contrast, populist authoritarian regimes "are mobilizational regimes in which

9401-472: The former landlocked country of Czechoslovakia ceased to exist on 1 January 1993. On 30 September 2022, the Luhansk People's Republic (de facto state) was annexed by Russia and ceased to exist as a landlocked de facto state. On 19 September 2023, Azerbaijan launched a new offensive against the Republic of Artsakh (de facto state) and achieved a decisive victory. The Government of Artsakh

9520-535: The freedom of speech, press and association) and an even playing field (in terms of access to resources, the media and legal recourse). Authoritarianism is considered a core concept of fascism and scholars agree that a fascist regime is foremost an authoritarian form of government, although not all authoritarian regimes are fascist. While authoritarianism is a defining characteristic of fascism, scholars argue that more distinguishing traits are needed to make an authoritarian regime fascist. Totalitarianism

9639-432: The government and the opposition do not alternate in power at least once following free elections. Authoritarian states might contain nominally democratic institutions such as political parties, legislatures and elections which are managed to entrench authoritarian rule and can feature fraudulent, non-competitive elections. Since 1946, the share of authoritarian states in the international political system increased until

9758-590: The hands of the direct descendants of Chagatai Khan , the second son of Genghis Khan. Orderly succession, prosperity, and internal peace prevailed in the Chaghatai lands, and the Mongol Empire as a whole remained a strong and united kingdom, the Golden Horde . In the early 14th century, however, as the Persian empire began to break up into its constituent parts, the Chaghatai territory was disrupted as

9877-406: The implementation of succession rules reduce the occurrence of coup attempts. Succession rules are believed to hamper coordination efforts among coup plotters by assuaging elites who have more to gain by patience than by plotting. According to political scientists Curtis Bell and Jonathan Powell, coup attempts in neighboring countries lead to greater coup-proofing and coup-related repression in

9996-1205: The least terrorism are the most and least democratic nations, and that "transitions from an authoritarian regime to a democracy may be accompanied by temporary increases in terrorism." Studies in 2013 and 2017 similarly found a nonlinear relationship between political freedom and terrorism, with the most terrorist attacks occurring in partial democracies and the fewest in "strict autocracies and full-fledged democracies." A 2018 study by Amichai Magen demonstrated that liberal democracies and polyarchies not only suffer fewer terrorist attacks as compared to other regime types, but also suffer fewer casualties in terrorist attacks as compared to other regime types, which may be attributed to higher-quality democracies' responsiveness to their citizens' demands, including "the desire for physical safety", resulting in "investment in intelligence, infrastructure protection, first responders, social resilience, and specialized medical care" which averts casualties. Magen also stated that terrorism in closed autocracies sharply increased starting in 2013. Within national democratic governments, there may be subnational authoritarian enclaves. A prominent examples of this includes

10115-463: The mid-1970s but declined from then until the year 2000. Prior to 2000, dictatorships typically began with a coup and replaced a pre-existing authoritarian regime. Since 2000, dictatorships are most likely to begin through democratic backsliding whereby a democratically elected leader established an authoritarian regime. Authoritarianism is characterized by highly concentrated and centralized government power maintained by political repression and

10234-651: The modern West, with core commitments to human rights and self-governance implemented by means of varying institutional devices") and from purely authoritarian regimes (which reject the idea of human rights or constraints on leaders' power). He describes authoritarian constitutionalist regimes as (1) authoritarian dominant-party states that (2) impose sanctions (such as libel judgments) against, but do not arbitrarily arrest , political dissidents; (3) permit "reasonably open discussion and criticism of its policies"; (4) hold "reasonably free and fair elections", without systemic intimidation, but "with close attention to such matters as

10353-708: The most landlocked countries, at 20 (including all three landlocked de facto states). If these transcontinental or culturally European countries are included in Asia, then both Africa and Europe (including Kosovo and Transnistria ) have the most, at 16. Depending on the status of Kazakhstan and the South Caucasian countries, Asia has between 9 and 13 (including South Ossetia ). South America only has two landlocked countries: Bolivia and Paraguay . Australia and North America have no landlocked countries, while Antarctica has no countries at all. Oceania (which

10472-424: The new Russian Socialist Federated Soviet Republic (RSFSR), was described by Vladimir Lenin as a "revolutionary" document. It was, he said, unlike any constitution drafted by a nation-state. The concept of "authoritarian constitutionalism" has been developed by legal scholar Mark Tushnet . Tushnet distinguishes authoritarian constitutionalist regimes from "liberal constitutionalist" regimes ("the sort familiar in

10591-407: The opposition and co-opting outsiders. Hindrances to free and fair elections in authoritarian systems may include: The foundations of stable authoritarian rule are that the authoritarian prevents contestation from the masses and other elites. The authoritarian regime may use co-optation or repression (or carrots and sticks) to prevent revolts. Authoritarian rule entails a balancing act whereby

10710-956: The organisation in 2005. Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked Generally, being landlocked creates political and economic disadvantages that having access to international waters would avoid. For this reason, nations large and small throughout history have fought to gain access to open waters, even at great expense in wealth, bloodshed, and political capital . The economic disadvantages of being landlocked can be alleviated or aggravated depending on degree of development, surrounding trade routes and freedom of trade , commonality of language, and other considerations. Some landlocked countries in Europe are affluent, such as Andorra , Austria , Liechtenstein , Luxembourg , San Marino , Switzerland , and Vatican City , all of which, excluding Luxembourg (a founding member of NATO ), frequently employ neutrality in global political issues. However, 32 out of

10829-436: The predominance of personal power over institutional norms. ... Few authoritarian regimes – be they communist, fascist, corporatist, or personalist – have managed to conduct orderly, peaceful, timely, and stable successions." Political scientist Theodore M. Vestal writes that authoritarian political systems may be weakened through inadequate responsiveness to either popular or elite demands and that

10948-544: The princes of various tribal groups competed for influence. One tribal chieftain, Timur (Tamerlane), emerged from these struggles in the 1380s as the dominant force in Transoxiana. Although he was not a descendant of Genghis Khan, Timur became the de facto ruler of Transoxiana and proceeded to conquer all of western Central Asia, Iran , the Caucasus , Mesopotamia , Asia Minor , and the southern steppe region north of

11067-488: The promotion of political elites"; (3) "the differentiation and functional specialization of institutions within the regime"; and (4) "the establishment of institutions for political participation and appeal that strengthen the CCP's legitimacy among the public at large." Some scholars have challenged notions that authoritarian states are inherently brittle systems that require repression and propaganda to make people comply with

11186-415: The proportion of authoritarian regimes with elections and support parties has risen in recent years. This is largely due to the increasing popularity of democracies and electoral autocracies, leading authoritarian regimes to imitate democratic regimes in hopes of receiving foreign aid and dodging criticism. According to a 2018 study, most party-led dictatorships regularly hold popular elections. Prior to

11305-484: The province of Transoxiana , and further east in what is today Xinjiang , the Sogdian intermediaries became the wealthiest of these merchants. As a result of this trade on what became known as the Silk Road , Bukhara and Samarkand eventually became extremely wealthy cities, and at times Transoxiana (Mawarannahr) was one of the most influential and powerful provinces of antiquity. In 327 BC, Macedonian ruler Alexander

11424-473: The ratio is 3:1). Historically, traveling between a landlocked country and a country which did not border said country required the traveler to pass border controls twice or more. In recent times the advent of air travel has largely negated this impediment. Countries have acted to overcome being landlocked by acquiring land that reaches the sea: Countries can make agreements on getting free transport of goods through neighbouring countries: Losing access to

11543-411: The regime's grip on power by inhibiting re coordination on a different set of arrangements." Unlike democratic constitutions, authoritarian constitutions do not set direct limits on executive authority; however, in some cases such documents may function as ways for elites to protect their own property rights or constrain autocrats' behavior. The Soviet Russia Constitution of 1918 , the first charter of

11662-714: The regime's incumbency and diminishing domestic challengers; Lai and Slater also argue that military regimes more often initiate military conflicts or undertake other "desperate measures" to maintain control as compared to single-party regimes. John Duckitt suggests a link between authoritarianism and collectivism , asserting that both stand in opposition to individualism . Duckitt writes that both authoritarianism and collectivism submerge individual rights and goals to group goals, expectations and conformities . According to Steven Levitsky and Lucan Way, authoritarian regimes that are created in social revolutions are far more durable than other kinds of authoritarian regimes. While

11781-586: The region of Uzbekistan was ruled by the Hephthalites and Sassanid Empires, as well as by other empires, for example, those formed by the Turkic Gokturk peoples. The Muslim conquests from the seventh century onward saw the Arabs bring Islam to Uzbekistan. In the same period, Islam began to take root among the nomadic Turkic peoples . In the eighth century, Transoxiana, the territory between

11900-528: The region they built an extensive irrigation system along the rivers. At this time, cities such as Bukhoro ( Bukhara ) and Samarqand ( Samarkand ) emerged as centres of government and high culture. By the fifth century BC, the Bactrian , Sogdian , and Tokharian states dominated the region. As East Asia began to develop its silk trade with the West, Using an extensive network of cities and rural settlements in

12019-408: The regular military; and developing multiple internal security agencies with overlapping jurisdiction that constantly monitor one another. Research shows that some coup-proofing strategies reduce the risk of coups occurring and reduce the likelihood of mass protests. However, coup-proofing reduces military effectiveness, and limits the rents that an incumbent can extract. A 2016 study shows that

12138-539: The rule of law. Democratic and authoritarian arguably differ most prominently in their elections. Democratic elections are generally inclusive, competitive, and fair. In most instances, the elected leader is appointed to act on behalf of the general will. Authoritarian elections, on the other hand, are frequently subject to fraud and extreme constraints on the participation of opposing parties. Autocratic leaders employ tactics like murdering political opposition and paying election monitors to ensure victory. Despite this,

12257-626: The ruler has to maintain the support of other elites (frequently through the distribution of state and societal resources) and the support of the public (through distribution of the same resources): the authoritarian rule is at risk if the balancing act is lopsided, as it risks a coup by the elites or an uprising by the mass public. According to a 2019 study by Sergei Guriev and Daniel Treisman , authoritarian regimes have over time become less reliant on violence and mass repression to maintain control. The study shows instead that authoritarians have increasingly resorted to manipulation of information as

12376-520: The sea is generally a great loss to a nation, politically, militarily, and economically. The following are examples of countries becoming landlocked. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea now gives a landlocked country a right of access to and from the sea without taxation of traffic through transit states. The United Nations has a programme of action to assist landlocked developing countries, and

12495-526: The south of the country. Uzbekistan has also been home to seismic activity, as evidenced by the 1902 Andijan earthquake , 2011 Fergana Valley earthquake , and 1966 Tashkent earthquake . A dam collapse at Sardoba Reservoir in May 2020 flooded 35,000 hectares of land. Six people died and 111,000 evacuated with recovery estimates over 1.5 trillion som. The devastation extended into areas inside neighbouring Kazakhstan . After Uzbekistan declared independence from

12614-545: The southern part of the narrow western lobe of the South Aral Sea remaining permanently in Uzbekistan. Much of the water was and continues to be used for the irrigation of cotton fields , a crop requiring a large amount of water to grow. Due to the Aral Sea loss, high salinity and contamination of the soil with heavy elements are especially widespread in Karakalpakstan , the region of Uzbekistan adjacent to

12733-408: The southwest, Tajikistan to the southeast, and Kyrgyzstan to the northeast, Uzbekistan is one of the largest Central Asian states and the only Central Asian state to border all the other four. Uzbekistan also shares a short border (less than 150 km or 93 mi) with Afghanistan to the south. Uzbekistan is a hot, dry, landlocked country . It is one of two doubly landlocked countries in

12852-466: The state places them at a significant advantage vis-à-vis their opponents." The term was coined by Steven Levitsky and Lucan A. Way in their 2010 book of the same name to discuss a type of hybrid regime that emerged during and after the Cold War . Competitive authoritarian regimes differ from fully authoritarian regimes in that elections are regularly held, the opposition can openly operate without

12971-422: The theory and finds that more democratic countries tend to have few wars (sometimes called militarized interstate disputes ) causing fewer battle deaths with one another and that democracies have far fewer civil wars . Research shows that the democratic nations have much less democide or murder by government. Those were also moderately developed nations before applying liberal democratic policies. Research by

13090-433: The use of strong central power to preserve the political status quo , and reductions in democracy , separation of powers , civil liberties , and the rule of law . Political scientists have created many typologies describing variations of authoritarian forms of government. Authoritarian regimes may be either autocratic or oligarchic and may be based upon the rule of a party or the military . States that have

13209-551: The vote. Most international observers refused to participate in the process and did not recognise the results, dismissing them as not meeting basic standards. The 2002 referendum also included a plan for a bicameral parliament consisting of a lower house (the Oliy Majlis) and an upper house (Senate). Members of the lower house are to be "full-time" legislators. Elections for the new bicameral parliament took place on 26 December. Following Islam Karimov's death on 2 September 2016,

13328-445: The world - that is, a landlocked country completely surrounded by other landlocked countries. The second doubly landlocked country is Liechtenstein . In addition, due to its location within a series of endorheic basins , none of its rivers lead to the sea. Less than 10% of its territory is intensively cultivated irrigated land in river valleys and oases. The Aral Sea , which has been largely desiccated by cotton production established in

13447-429: The world. However, the dissolutions of the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia ; the breakup of Yugoslavia ; the independence referendums of South Ossetia (de facto state), Eritrea , Montenegro , South Sudan , and the Luhansk People's Republic (de facto state); and the unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo (de facto state) created 15 new landlocked countries and five landlocked de facto states while

13566-431: The world; if you are landlocked, you serve your neighbors." Others have argued that being landlocked has an advantage as it creates a "natural tariff barrier" that protects the country from cheap imports. In some instances, this has led to more robust local food systems. Landlocked developing countries have significantly higher costs of international cargo transportation compared to coastal developing countries (in Asia

13685-465: Was officially dissolved on 1 January 2024. As a result, Artsakh ceased to exist as a landlocked de facto state and the Nagorno-Karabakh region was reintegrated into Azerbaijan. As of 1 April 2024, there were 44 landlocked countries and three landlocked de facto states ( Kosovo , South Ossetia , and Transnistria ) in the world. Historically, being landlocked has been disadvantageous to

13804-586: Was often spelled as " Ўзбекистон " in Uzbek Cyrillic or " Узбекистан " in Russian during Soviet rule. The region currently known as the country of Uzbekistan has been referred to by many names over the millennia. The name, Uzbekistan first appears in 16th century literature. Other names for the region include: Transoxiana , Sogdia , and the Khanate of Bukhara . In the 14th century the region served as

13923-562: Was one of the world's first great astronomers. It was during the Timurid dynasty that Turkic, in the form of the Chaghatai dialect, became a literary language in its own right in Transoxiana, although the Timurids were Persianate in culture. The greatest Chaghataid writer, Ali-Shir Nava'i , was active in the city of Herat (now in northwestern Afghanistan) in the second half of the 15th century. The Timurid state quickly split in half after

14042-404: Was replaced by his long-time Prime Minister , Shavkat Mirziyoyev , on 14 December of the same year. On 6 November 2021, Mirziyoyev was sworn into his second term in office, after gaining a landslide victory in presidential election. Uzbekistan has an area of 448,978 square kilometres (173,351 sq mi). It is the 56th largest country in the world by area and the 40th by population. Among

14161-645: Was then part of the Russian Empire , which had both ocean and sea access. With the dissolution of Austria-Hungary in 1918 and creation of an independent, landlocked Austria , Liechtenstein became the sole doubly landlocked country until 1938. In the Anschluss that year, Austria was absorbed into Nazi Germany , which possessed a border on the Baltic Sea and the North Sea . After World War II, Austria regained its independence and Liechtenstein once again became doubly landlocked. Uzbekistan, which had been part of

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