People are especially eager to see an increase in US investments into Uzbekistan. They hope this will bring them jobs and better salaries. A lot of people here are studying English and would be willing to work for American companies. Unfortunately, the investment climate in Uzbekistan isn't favorable. We have an inconvertible currency, prohibitively high taxes, bureaucracy, corruption, and incompetent officials.
People also have a very low purchasing power.
Now political risks are added to this list. I perfectly remember how such respectable American companies as Caterpillar and 3M tried to launch their operations here in 1997. In the spring of 1998, groups of US businessmen visited Uzbekistan almost weekly and discussed investment opportunities with President Karimov. All these efforts led to nothing. This time, Secretary Madeleine Albright did her part of the job to help Uzbekistan.