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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Uzbekistan
Index
The attempted coup against the Gorbachev government by disaffected
hard-liners in Moscow, which occurred in August 1991, was a catalyst for
independence movements throughout the Soviet Union. Despite Uzbekistan's
initial hesitancy to oppose the coup, the Supreme Soviet of Uzbekistan
declared the republic independent on August 31, 1991. In December 1991, an
independence referendum was passed with 98.2 percent of the popular vote.
The same month, a parliament was elected and Karimov was chosen the new
nation's first president.
Although Uzbekistan had not sought independence, when events brought
them to that point, Karimov and his government moved quickly to adapt
themselves to the new realities. They realized that under the Commonwealth
of Independent States (CIS--see Glossary), the loose federation proposed
to replace the Soviet Union, no central government would provide the
subsidies to which Uzbek governments had become accustomed for the
previous seventy years. Old economic ties would have to be reexamined and
new markets and economic mechanisms established. Although Uzbekistan as
defined by the Soviets had never had independent foreign relations,
diplomatic relations would have to be established with foreign countries
quickly. Investment and foreign credits would have to be attracted, a
formidable challenge in light of Western restrictions on financial aid to
nations restricting expression of political dissent. For example, the
suppression of internal dissent in 1992 and 1993 had an unexpectedly
chilling effect on foreign investment. Uzbekistan's image in the West
alternated in the ensuing years between an attractive, stable experimental
zone for investment and a post-Soviet dictatorship whose human rights
record made financial aid inadvisable. Such alternation exerted strong
influence on the political and economic fortunes of the new republic in
its first five years (see International Financial Relations, this ch.).
Data as of March 1996
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