Uzbekistan

Country Spotlight

Uzbekistan does not possess nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons. When part of the USSR, Uzbekistan provided much of the uranium for the Soviet nuclear weapons program. Today, it is a member of all relevant arms control treaties including the Central Asia Nuclear Weapons Free-Zone Treaty.

Region Former Soviet Union

$13 billion Estimated cost of proposed Russian-supplied nuclear power plant

63 Kilograms of highly enriched uranium returned from Uzbekistan to Russia in 2006

5th Global rank in uranium oxide production

Nuclear

Possesses two nuclear research reactors from the Soviet era; one remains operational, while the other was decommissioned with the help of the IAEA in 2019
Has been a major uranium supplier since the Soviet era and continues to mine and export uranium globally
Joined and originally proposed the Central Asian Nuclear Weapon Free Zone (CANWFZ)

Tutorial on Nuclear and Radiological Security

Teaching Tool

Tutorial on Nuclear and Radiological Security

Tutorial on Nuclear 101

Teaching Tool

Tutorial on Nuclear 101

Biological

Inherited numerous biological weapons facilities from the Soviet era, including the Aralsk-7
Despite efforts under the U.S. Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program there remain serious concerns over the safety of the remaining biological agents in these facilities

Tutorial on Biological Weapons Nonproliferation

Teaching Tool

Tutorial on Biological Weapons Nonproliferation

Missile

No known ballistic missile program, but possesses the industrial and technological capability to produce components
Party to the Hague Code of Conduct Against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCOC)

Tutorial on Missiles and Other WMD Delivery Systems

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Tutorial on Missiles and Other WMD Delivery Systems

Tutorial on Nuclear Testing

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Tutorial on Nuclear Testing

Chemical

Does not possess a chemical weapons program

Tutorial on Chemical Weapons Nonproliferation

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Tutorial on Chemical Weapons Nonproliferation

Treaties and Regimes Memberships

See all Treaties & Regimes

Central Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone (CANWFZ)

The Central Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone (CANWFZ) made formerly-Soviet Central Asia, a Nuclear-Weapons-Free-Zone under the Semipalatinsk Treaty.

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Biological Weapons Convention (BWC)

The BTWC mandates the elimination of existing biological weapons and prohibits developing, stockpiling, or using biological and toxin weapons.

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NPT

The NPT is a treaty aimed at limiting the spread of nuclear weapons through the three pillars of non-proliferation, disarmament, and peaceful use of nuclear energy.

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Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT)

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty bans all nuclear explosion tests on Earth. It needs eight key countries to ratify before entry into force.

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2023 Regional Workshop on Nuclear Energy and Nonproliferation: Insights, Policy Recommendations, and Featured Papers

Report Dec 12, 2024

2023 Regional Workshop on Nuclear Energy and Nonproliferation: Insights, Policy Recommendations, and Featured Papers

Strong nonproliferation practices can help pave the way for expediting and successfully expanding nuclear energy.

Disincentivizing Bioweapons: Theory and Policy Approaches

Special Report Dec 10, 2024

Disincentivizing Bioweapons: Theory and Policy Approaches

Nathan A. Paxton, Ph.D., Jaime M. Yassif, Ph.D., Shayna Korol, Angela Kane, Clarisse Bertherat , Jaroslav Krasny, Ph.D. , Louison Mazeaud , James Revill , Amanda Moodie Muldowney , Gregory Lewis, DPhil, Sonia Ben Ouagrham-Gormley, Ph.D. , Michelle Bentley, Ph.D. , Tristan Volpe, Ph.D., Alex London, Ph.D. , Emma J. Curran, Ph.D., Nir Eyal, Ph.D.

Exploring AI-Biosecurity Governance in the Global South