US–Central Asia Procurement Deals Are About More Than Just Trade, Experts Say

On the sidelines of the recent U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York, the United States signed a raft of landmark trade deals with the Central Asian nations of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. U.S. officials, including President Donald Trump, hailed the agreements as significant boons to the American economy and job market. According to experts, however, the deals are about more than mere economics and bilateral trade. “These deals show that Central Asian states are willing to work closely with U.S. companies because they understand how important it is for the current U.S. administration to make deals that promote U.S. exports and create jobs,” Mamuka Tsereteli, a senior fellow at the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at the American Foreign Policy Council, said....