As the Uzbek S.S.R.

slowly regains direct contact with the outside world, Uzbeks rise to high levels in Soviet politics.

Nuritdin A. Muhitdinov, Sharaf R. Rashidov, and Yadgar S. Nasriddinova give Uzbeks greater visibility in the USSR, serving actively in Soviet diplomacy and foreign affairs.

From 1959, Rashidov, the Uzbek Communist party chief, rules the Uzbek S.S.R.