Abstract/Summary

Uzbekistan (the Republic of Uzbekistan) is a country in Central Asia. It has a population of 28,929,716 (the largest among the Central Asian countries) and a territory of 447,400 square kilometers and is bordered on the north and on the west by Kazakhstan, on the east by Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, and on the south by Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Uzbekistan was a Union republic of the Soviet Union until August 1991, when it declared independence. The country has considerable reserves of gas and oil. Its capital is Tashkent. This entry focuses on the history of Uzbekistan, with an emphasis on past and present conflicts as well as political and security concerns.