Uzbekistan's external debt turned out to be almost 15 times greater than that of Kyrgyzstan

Against the backdrop of discussions on the structure of Kyrgyzstan's public debt, the indicators of neighbouring countries look particularly contrasting. While Kyrgyzstan's external debt amounted to $5.16 billion as of 31 October, Uzbekistan's total external debt reached $75.4 billion as of 1 October 2025.
 

Simply put, Uzbekistan's debt burden on external obligations is approximately 14.6 times higher than that of Kyrgyzstan.
According to the Kyrgyz Ministry of Finance, external debt accounts for 59.4% of the country's total debt. The largest creditor remains the Export-Import Bank of China, with $1.499 billion, or 29% of external debt. These funds were mainly directed towards infrastructure, roads, energy and large construction projects.
 

Uzbekistan is on a different scale. In January–September 2025, the country's external debt grew by $11.3 billion, with public debt increasing by 10% and corporate debt by almost 27%, according to data from the Central Bank of the Republic.