Uzbekistan’s former Foreign Minister and current Special Presidential Representative on Foreign Policy, Abdulaziz Kamilov, revealed in a recent interview with Ishonch.uz that the country narrowly avoided a military conflict with its neighbors around 8-9 years ago. He highlighted the precarious situation in 2016-2017, stating that escalating tensions with neighboring states posed a serious risk of armed conflict had the trajectory continued unchanged.
Kamilov emphasized President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s pivotal role in averting this crisis. He quoted the President’s 2017 UN address, declaring Central Asia a foreign policy priority and initiating crucial consultative meetings between Central Asian leaders. Kamilov highlighted this initiative as a key factor in de-escalating tensions.
“President Mirziyoyev prioritized Central Asia in our foreign policy because numerous unresolved issues had accumulated. Frankly, we ourselves had contributed significantly to these problems. Had these issues remained unresolved and tensions intensified, the consequences would have been severe. The President’s initiative, launched in 2017 at the UN, to hold consultative meetings of Central Asian leaders, received widespread support,” Kamilov stated.
Kamilov served as Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister from 2012 until April 2022. His contributions to regional stability have been internationally recognized, with awards including the Turkmen presidential award for strengthening Turkmen-Uzbek friendship and cooperation (2024) and Italy’s highest state honor, the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (2025).