Rustam Rasulovich Inoyatov (; born 22 June 1944) is a former Uzbek

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

official, as well as a

colonel general Colonel general is a military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically General officer#Old European system, general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, ...

. He was head of the National Security Service of

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

(SNB) from 1995 until his dismissal in January 2018. He was said to have been part of the Tashkent clan, a powerful faction within the Uzbek elite. He was said to be one of the most powerful men in the country.

Biography

Rustam Rasulovich Inoyatov was born in the city of Sherabad, Surxondaryo Region. His father Rasul Inoyatov was a

KGB The Committee for State Security (, ), abbreviated as KGB (, ; ) was the main security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991. It was the direct successor of preceding Soviet secret police agencies including the Cheka, Joint State Polit ...

colonel. From 1965 to 1967 he was a concrete worker in the Tashkent Building Trust, at the same time he studied at the university. In 1968 he graduated from the Faculty of Iranian Philology of the Tashkent State University. After graduation he served in the ranks of the Soviet army. During military service he was accepted into the service of the KGB of the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Worked in various officer positions in the KGB of the

Uzbek SSR The Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (, ), also known as Soviet Uzbekistan, the Uzbek SSR, UzSSR, or simply Uzbekistan and rarely Uzbekia, was a union republic of the Soviet Union. It was governed by the Uzbek branch of the Soviet Communist P ...

, in The First Chief Directorate of the KGB. In 1976–1981 he was a case officer in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

under diplomatic cover. Since 27 June 1995 – Chair of the National Security Service of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Previously, he was First Deputy ChairmanDecree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated 17 June 1994 No. УП-874 "On awarding R. Inoyatov with a Certificate of Honor of the Republic of Uzbekistan" of the department. In 1996 he was awarded the rank of "lieutenant general", in 1999 – "colonel general". From 1999 to 2020 Inoyatov was the President of the Tennis Federation of Uzbekistan. On 31 January 2018 Rustam Inoyatov was relieved of the post of Chairman of the National Security Service of the Republic of Uzbekistan and appointed to the position of State Advisor to the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. On 15 November 2021 he was relieved of this position. Rustam Inoyatov is considered one of the most influential people in Uzbekistan – the grise eminence of Uzbek politics.

Rise to power

In 1995 the

President of Uzbekistan The president of the Republic of Uzbekistan () is the head of state and executive authority in Uzbekistan. The office of President was established in 1991, replacing the position of Chairperson of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Uzb ...

Islam Karimov Islam Abduganiyevich Karimov (30 January 1938 – 2 September 2016) was an Uzbek politician who served as the first president of Uzbekistan, from the country's independence in 1991 until his death in 2016. He was the last First Secretary of the ...

, gave him the position of chief of the SNB as a counter weight to his rival's power,

Zokir Almatov Zokir Almatov (born 10 October 1949 in Zangiata, Tashkent Region, Uzbek SSR, Soviet Union), sometimes romanized Zakir, is an Uzbek politician who was the interior minister of Uzbekistan until 2005. In 1967 he graduated from high school and immedi ...

, the

Minister of Internal Affairs An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

. Under Inoyatov's leadership, the SNB rose to power over the rival MVD of Almatov. By 1999, they had more power and funding than the MVD. He is widely thought to be the kingmaker when

died. Inoyatov was dismissed by Shavkat Mirziyoyev on 31 January 2018. On 15 November 2021, he was relieved of his post as State Advisor to the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Inoyatov, Rustam Living people 1944 births Uzbekistani politicians KGB officers Uzbekistani military personnel Recipients of Order of Friendship of Uzbekistan