ABSTRACT
Chapter 6 then focuses on the way the East Asian states’ influences are shaped and received in Central Asia (CA) using the case of the Chinese road maps of cooperation with Uzbekistan after the death of its dictatorial leader Islam Karimov and its re-opening to the world. By focusing on the impact of Chinese engagement in Uzbekistan, this chapter promotes an understanding of the motivations of smaller CA states such as Uzbekistan in strategically engaging China. Although China’s Belt and Road Initiative has received wide coverage, few details of its impacts have been analyzed. This chapter aims to fill in this gap by outlining the latest project details of Chinese engagement and their impact in this region.
