The interview, entitled From Uzbekistan to New Uzbekistan: In Search of the Lost Soul, discusses the country’s recent past, present and future, as well as political developments in the region. It analyses the intentions of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, his people-oriented and patriotic policies, as well as his regional initiatives and their results. Fasbender: Mr Rafiqov, I have long wanted to write about Uzbekistan and gain a deeper understanding of the processes taking place in this country. There are reasons to consider this country, located in Eurasia, as the centre of the continent, not only from a geopolitical point of view, but also from a civilisational one. In my opinion, the two great cultural and scientific upsurges that took place in this country in the distant past - the Islamic Renaissance and the Timurid Renaissance - were of the utmost importance not only for the peoples of the East or the Islamic world, but also for the history of mankind. However, this country,