"Rumors of Chinese land deals spark public unease in Uzbekistan", 1 July 2025

Rumors that the Uzbek government is handing over farmland to Chinese investors keep bubbling up despite repeated and categorical denials from officials, putting Tashkent in an uncomfortable spot.

The latest flare up came after a video made the rounds online purporting to show a local agricultural official threatening that the government would hand unproductive farmland over to Chinese investors, local outlet Kun.uz reported in mid-June. The employee quickly walked back the comments and the Ministry of Agriculture strongly denied anything of the sort was taking place.

But the latest episode reflects the growing distrust of China in Uzbekistan as President Shavkat Mirziyoyev seeks to deepen his country’s economic ties with the country’s largest trade partner...

The rumors also come at a time of stress for Uzbek agriculture as Mirziyoyev’s efforts to liberalize the sector, which retains significant elements of the Soviet structure, have been slow, and local authorities have occasionally been heavy handed in enforcing cotton and silk quotas. All of that while Uzbek farms face growing pressure from climate change...

In April, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty published an investigation, reporting it had found the government allegedly seized 1,800 hectares of farmland from at least 46 farmers in the Andijan Region in the Fergana Valley and handed the parcels over to Chinese entities. According to the US-funded outlet, there was evidence of a similar situation in the Qashqadaryo Region along the Turkmen border, near where the video in the latest incident was filmed.

The Uzbek government did not respond to an RFE/RL request for comment, but days after its report was published, Deputy Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade Ilzat Kasymov said foreign investors do not receive free land and that Chinese investment in the agricultural sector represents a very small portion of the total.

The latest round of rumors and discontent about sweetheart farmland deals for Chinese entities, and broader concerns about Chinese entities buying up property in Uzbek cities, began in February when influencers aired the claims on social media. Dozens of anti-China pages appeared on Instagram and calls to boycott China spread. Government figures and state-aligned media launched a campaign to tamp down the anti-China backlash in early March...

Uzbek officials have defended the Chinese investments as a boon for a country that is looking to catch up economically after years of isolation. Chinese companies are now heavily investing in renewable energy, mining and factories, and the country has begun work on the massive China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway...