Dreams Clash with Reality
The idea of creating a unified visa space in Central Asia, modeled after the European Schengen zone, has received a new impetus. At the recent summit of the region's leaders, President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov once again called for the launch of a unified visa system to simplify travel for foreign tourists, whose combined contribution to the region's GDP grew from 6.7 billion dollars in 2020 to 20.1 billion in 2025.
The need for reform is obvious: tourists want to visit several countries in a single trip, but face bureaucracy, long queues at borders, and requirements for special permits, such as for travel to Gorno-Badakhshan in Tajikistan. Eduard Kubatov, head of the Tourism Development Support Agency of Kyrgyzstan, reported that consultations on a unified visa are already underway with Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan.
However, experts remain skeptical. Security agencies in the region's countries are reluctant to agree to easing border controls due to security concerns and the fight against smuggling. Furthermore, Turkmenistan, which remains closed, is unlikely to join the initiative, and analysts emphasize that full tourism integration is impossible without ensuring freedom of movement for the citizens of the Central Asian states themselves.