Three years ago, an unknown Uzbek company registered in an apartment emerged from nowhere to land more than $100 million in state contracts before vanishing again. A new RFE/RL investigation reveals the firm’s ties to the Uzbek president’s son-in-law.
President Shavkat Mirziyoev secured seven more years in power in a managed election on July 9. An investigation by RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service looked at how some of his lesser-known relatives and in-laws have tasted new power and prosperity during his time in charge.
Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoev promised reforms and transparency. But among the top foreign investors pouring money into his new Uzbekistan are the Abdukadyrs, a secretive clan who made their fortune in crime and corruption.
The wife of Uzbekistan’s first deputy prime minister has never appeared in public. But now, two separate document leaks one from the tropical British Virgin Islands, the other from Switzerland reveal her to be a secret player in one of the country’s top business relationships.