Soft power progress: Uzbekistan advances in global influence ranking

Uzbekistan has moved up from 101st to 99th place in the Global Soft Power Index 2025, achieving a score of 33.6 points. This ranking was published by the consulting organization Brand Finance.

The index reflects a country’s ability to influence the international community, not through coercive power (hard power), but through persuasion and attractiveness. In essence, soft power represents a nation’s positive image on the global stage, encouraging other countries to cooperate with it.

The ranking is based on the opinions of over 170,000 people across more than 100 countries, evaluating 193 nations. Each country was assessed across 55 criteria, including:

• Business and trade
• Media and communications
• Culture and heritage
• Education and science
• People and values
• International relations
• Governance
• Sustainable development
• Influence and reputation

Uzbekistan showed the most improvement in the categories of Culture and Heritage (+10) and Influence and Reputation (+9). However, declines were noted in Education and Science (-11) and International Relations (-13).

The United States retained the top spot in the rankings, followed by China and the United Kingdom in second and third places. Russia ranked 16th, Ukraine 46th, and Belarus 80th. Among Uzbekistan's neighbors, Kyrgyzstan ranked 146th, Tajikistan 141st, Kazakhstan 87th, and Turkmenistan 134th.

Previously, Uzbekistan was reported to lead Central Asia in defense expenditures for 2025, with a budget of $2.8 billion, according to the Global Firepower report. Kazakhstan ranked second in the region with $2 billion, followed by Turkmenistan with $1.1 billion. Kyrgyzstan ($221.8 million) and Tajikistan ($446 million) had the lowest defense budgets in the region.