China and Uzbekistan form new ties

State media reported that China and Uzbekistan signed more than a dozen agreements that are expected to boost cooperation in trade, customs, high technology and energy between them, including a US$600m joint venture between China National Petroleum Corp and Uzbekistan's state oil concern. Uzbekistan's authoritarian leader, President Islam Karimov, arrived in China to the warm welcome of the Chinese leadership, which overlooked criticism in the West for Karimov's May 13 crackdown on anti-government protesters that Uzbek officials said left 169 people dead, a number disputed by human rights activists. Analysts say the new ties with Uzbekistan mark China's strategy to access Central Asia's energy resources and to establish stability in the former Soviet states in Central Asia, a region it fears could breed Islamic militancy that may seep into its territory.