The Uzbek government, historically very wary of the spread of radicalism from Afghanistan, offered conflicting reports last week about incidents involving an alleged collision between an Uzbek MiG-29 and a fleeing Afghan military plane.

Aliyev had stunned Moscow by saying it was not doing enough to stop armed incidents along the frontier and threats nine months after Baku overwhelmed Armenia and re-took occupied Azerbaijani lands held for nearly three decades.

In an extensive interview with CNN Türk, he emphasised that statements by Kremlin officials that they want to help rebuild Armenia's devastated army - crushed during Baku's 2020 retaking of long-occupied Azerbaijani lands, "were devoid of logic".

In recent days, several incidents set off alarm bells in Tashkent over the sudden deterioration in the situation and a reluctance to let Afghani military absconders into Uzbekistan.

Wedged between Russia and China—the two biggest powers in Eurasia—Kazakhstan also manages to play the role of the United States’ biggest partner in Central Asia. In maintaining consistently good relations with Russia, China, and the United States all at the same time, Kazakhstan is performing a unique diplomatic balancing act. Yet as the confrontation worsens between the global powers, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for Kazakhstan to maintain that geopolitical balance without getting drawn