Discuss the significance of Central Asia in India's extended neighbourhood policy, with reference to recent India–Uzbekistan engagement.

Central Asia forms India's "extended neighbourhood" — geographically proximate yet lacking a direct land route. India was among the first states to recognise Uzbekistan's sovereignty, establishing diplomatic ties in March 1992 and elevating them to a Strategic Partnership in 2011 [1]. Recent engagement shows why the region is strategically indispensable, even as economic outcomes lag behind political intent.

Strategic and security significance

• Central Asia anchors India's continental outreach amid competing Chinese and Russian influence, institutionalised through the first India–Central Asia Summit (27 January 2022) [2] and NSA-level dialogue (3rd meeting, Bishkek, October 2025) [1].
• Defence cooperation is operational, not symbolic: the annual Exercise DUSTLIK, whose 6th edition was held at Aundh, Pune in April 2025, focused on joint sub-conventional counter-terror operations [3].
• A standing Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism (9th meeting, Tashkent, September 2025) addresses shared concerns of radicalisation and instability spilling from Afghanistan [1].

Economic and energy significance

• The region is a source of uranium, hydrocarbons and critical minerals, aligning with India's energy security and clean-technology needs.
• Yet trade remains modest — India–Uzbekistan trade stood at about USD 980 million in 2024, with Indian investments near USD 451 million, well below potential [1]. The Bilateral Investment Treaty signed at Tashkent in September 2024 seeks to correct this by assuring investor protection [4].
• Connectivity is the binding constraint; Pakistan's denial of transit makes Chabahar and the INSTC essential [1].

Developmental and cultural significance

• Soft power is a genuine asset: four Indian universities operate in Uzbekistan, alongside India Study Centres, ICCR chairs and a 21,000-strong Indian community [1].
• Digital cooperation has matured from the 2018 MeitY agreement into a standing Joint Working Group covering AI and cybersecurity [1].

Central Asia thus matters to India less as a market than as a strategic, energy and civilisational bridge. The way forward lies in converting institutional density into commerce — operationalising Chabahar-INSTC linkages and mineral partnerships — so that the promise of the Delhi Declaration translates into a genuinely integrated extended neighbourhood.