BelTA reported on July 2 that Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a meeting in the run-up to Independence Day in Minsk on July 2 that in the near future, there may be a fight for dominance of two centers of power in Central Asia: the United States and the European Union on the one hand, and China on the other. 

The president reportedly stressed that there is a fight for the West's dominance not only in Europe but also in Central Asia.

The Belarusian leader warned about the continuation and intensification of this fight when street riots broke out in Kazakhstan earlier this year.

Then, Aleksandr Lukashenko predicted that Uzbekistan could become the next point for provocations: “We have provided Uzbekistan with many facts. They were even somehow offended when I said so at one of the summits. What happened yesterday? The Republic of Karakalpakstan, about half of Uzbekistan, allegedly found that something was wrong in the Constitution (they are going to have a constitutional referendum), which started the unrest.  No! They start destabilizing Uzbekistan.  Today they are already starting to say that foreigners had a hand in it.  They will not leave Kazakhstan either.  The situation is very complicated there.  Central Asia, just like us, is caught between two fires: Europeans and Americans on one side and China on the other.  China is helping Central Asia to survive, to hold out.  This fight will be in Central Asia in the near future. The symptoms of this have already become evident,” according to BelTA.