Blinken Wraps Up Central Asia Tour Before G-20 Talks in India

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a meeting with Uzbekistan Acting Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov at the National Library in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on March 1, 2023. Olivier Douliery/Pool Photo via AP

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is wrapping up a brief tour of Central Asia in Uzbekistan before heading to India for what is expected to be a contentious Ukraine-dominated meeting of foreign ministers from the Group of 20.

Blinken met Wednesday in Tashkent with senior Uzbek officials a day after warning his counterparts from all five Central Asian nations about the dangers posed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.