Despite ongoing diplomatic engagement with the Taliban on trade and transit issues, Uzbekistan is unlikely to return Afghanistan’s military aircraft, which were flown into the country during the Taliban’s takeover in 2021, according to an analysis by The Diplomat.
The Uzbek government has consistently maintained that these aircraft belong to the United States. In a May 2022 interview, Ismatulla Irgashev, Uzbekistan’s special representative on Afghanistan, told Voice of America that the planes were funded by the previous Afghan government but paid for by the U.S. administration. “We believe it is totally up to Washington how to deal with them… We’ve kept this military equipment in agreement with the U.S. and have informed the Taliban of this,” Irgashev said.
Uzbekistan’s current air force is primarily composed of Soviet or Russian aircraft. According to Flight Global’s 2024 World Air Forces directory, the Uzbek Air Force operates 38 MiG-29s, 20 Su-27s, and 13 Su-25s. However, The Diplomat noted that the refurbishment and return to service of six PC-12 aircraft could enhance Uzbekistan’s air capabilities. Catherine Putz, writing for The Diplomat, observed that the non-Soviet origin of the Afghan planes could pose maintenance challenges but also presents an opportunity for U.S.-Uzbek military cooperation.
During the fall of the Afghan government in mid-August 2021, dozens of planes and helicopters from Mazar-i-Sharif fled across the border to Termez, Uzbekistan. Three years later, the 46 Afghan aircraft that landed in Uzbekistan are reportedly being transferred to Uzbek authorities.
Jonathan Henick, the U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan, recently confirmed that Washington and Tashkent have reached an agreement regarding these aircraft. “These aircraft were never Afghan; they have always been under U.S. ownership,” Henick said. “While the Afghan military used these aircraft, the ownership has always remained with us.”
