Uzbekistan’s Government Embraces Conservative Islam While Courting the United States

When a senior Taliban minister insulted Uzbek Islam, both capitals rushed to downplay the incident, exposing the underlying dynamic in Tashkent. Under President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Uzbekistan has moved from the severe religious clampdown of Islam Karimov’s rule to a policy that tolerates, and occasionally cultivates, an ultraconservative strain of Islam that supports the government. Figures such as celebrity imam Komil Rabbimov and Instagram-famous cleric Abror Abduazimov have been given official platforms, while dissenting bloggers and journalists are jailed or stripped of citizenship.

The state’s approach contrasts with its public outreach to the United States, where it seeks investment and diplomatic goodwill. Analysts warn that the coexistence of a pro-US foreign policy and domestically nurtured anti-Western, anti-Israeli rhetoric may become unsustainable, potentially reshaping Uzbekistan’s future trajectory.