The Future, and History of Uzbek-Kyrgyz Relations In Kyrgyzstan

Luke J. Jensen
Fri, 17 Apr 2026 09:15:00 PDT

Kyrgyzstan was once hailed as Central Asia’s Island of Democracy, as one of the realms in which hope for a democratic post-Soviet world seemed brightest. Today Kyrgyzstan is near-forgotten, with next to no western media attention, significantly less economic support, and rampant internal problems. Kyrgyzstan today suffers from corruption, disastrous minority relations, and a generally high level of poverty. The focus of this paper is to examine how minority relations, primarily Uzbek-Kyrgyz, have deteriorated in Kyrgyzstan, and what can and should be done, politically, socially, and economically to help ease the tension in Kyrgyzstan. The primary points of focus for the historical deterioration of minority relations are Soviet policy, economic conditions, foreign relations, and some added historical context.