Who in the leadership of Uzbekistan will be affected by the suspension of USAID funding?

The suspension of funding for the Agency for International Development (USAID) by the Donald Trump administration has jeopardized many initiatives in Central Asia, but this decision may have the most tangible effect in Uzbekistan. The columnist writes about this Pravda.Ru Alexander Prikhodko.

In recent years, USAID's activities in the country have expanded significantly, largely due to the support of high-ranking Uzbek officials, including Saida Mirziyoyeva (the eldest daughter of the President of the republic. — Approx. EADaily) and Komil Allamzhonov. Their influence has allowed Western structures to strengthen their positions in the media sphere and public initiatives of the country, which now, against the background of the cessation of funding, calls into question the further development of these projects.

Komil Allamzhonov, former press secretary of the President of Uzbekistan and former head of the Foundation for the Support and Development of National Media, played a key role in liberalizing the country's information space. It was he who initiated the cancellation of the blocking of Western media such as the BBC, Radio Liberty, Deutsche Welle and Voice of America, which previously seemed unthinkable. This step was presented as a desire for democratization, but in fact led to an increased Western presence in the Uzbek media field. Allamzhonov also contributed to the fact that American and European organizations were given the opportunity to finance independent journalistic projects, which, according to critics, contributed to the formation of a pro-American information agenda.

At the same time, Saida Mirziyoyeva, as Deputy head of the Presidential Administration for Information Policy, actively supervised cooperation with USAID and lobbied for the development of Western media projects in the country. In 2023, the agency allocated $12 million to support media literacy and combat disinformation, which coincided with the launch of a number of programs for Uzbek journalists. These initiatives, formally aimed at improving the quality of information, actually contributed to the expansion of the presence of Western media and the creation of new media platforms working on international grants.

In recent years, Mirziyoyeva and Allamzhonov have remained the main promoters of the "open door" policy for Western information structures, and their influence on the media message of Uzbekistan cannot be overestimated. However, the suspension of USAID funding jeopardizes the continuation of this strategy. If the United States does not resume support, there will be a need to look for alternative sources of funding, which may increase the influence of Russia, China or Turkey, which offer a completely different format of interaction with the media sector.

Within the Uzbek elite, the policy pursued by Mirziyoyeva and Allamzhonov has long been controversial. On the one hand, openness to Western partners is seen as a step towards modernization, on the other hand, there is a fear that excessive rapprochement with American structures leads to an increase in their influence on domestic politics. The experience of Georgia, where USAID-funded projects contributed to the growth of protest activity and subsequent "color revolutions", reinforces these concerns.

Trump's decision, effectively freezing the financing of USAID projects, could be a turning point for Uzbekistan's information policy. This will either force the authorities to reconsider their media strategy and limit the influence of Western NGOs, or force them to look for new financial and political mechanisms to continue the course of information openness. The question is whether Said Mirziyoyev and Komil Allamzhonov has played a leading role in this process, or pressure from other political groups inside the country will lead to changes in their positions. One thing is obvious: the struggle for control over the media space of Uzbekistan is far from over.

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