Uzbekistan Joins Eurasian Economic Community
January 25, 2006
EES leaders at Konstantinovsky Palace outside St. Petersburg on 25 January (epa)
The EES is one of a number of overlapping regional blocs formed since the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
In addition to Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan -- which along with Ukraine are members of the so-called Common Economic Space -- the EES brings together Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and now Uzbekistan.
Summit participants were expected to discuss plans to merge the EES with another regional forum, the Central Asian Cooperation Organization, which is made of Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.
Addressing today's summit, Uzbek President Islam Karimov said the merger of the two organizations would boost regional integration processes.
The West has strongly criticized Karimov's government in the wake of a bloody crackdown against a May demonstration in the eastern city of Andijon. Uzbekistan has since curtailed its military cooperation with the United States and seemingly sought to enhance ties with Moscow.
(ITAR-TASS, AP)