Uzbekistan blocking aid supplies to Afghanistan
The former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan, an ally in George W Bush’s so-called "war on terrorism", is blocking humanitarian supplies into Afghanistan, according to aid agencies working in the area.
Uzbekistan has refused to open its border with Afghanistan to allow aid supplies to flow through, so agencies must travel through Turkmenistan to bring food, clothes and medicine to the impoverished Afghan population.
The route through Turkmenistan takes four days and is further complicated by the difficulty in getting permission to enter that country. A trip from Uzbekistan to Mazar-e-Sharif takes just two hours.
