In 2019, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported just under 100 Central Asians; in fiscal year 2024 nearly 750 were removed from the United States and returned to the region.

While Central Asians account for a tiny portion – less than 0.3 percent – of the 271,484 noncitizens deported from the United States in 2024, the dramatic increase in the number of Central Asians attempting to enter, or remain in, the U.S. illegally reflects the knock-on effects of the Russian war in Ukraine; worsening conditions for Central Asians in Russia more broadly, particularly since the March 2024 Crocus City Hall attack; and a degree of malicious opportunism among human traffickers promising a pathway to the U.S.

As made obvious by the graph below, the vast majority of Central Asians deported from the U.S. last year were from Uzbekistan – 572 individuals – according to ICE’s 2024 Annual Report, published in December. Tajikistan is second, with 77 people, and Kyrgyzstan third with 69. In all three, the numbers of citizens apparently attempting to enter or stay in the U.S. illegally has increased dramatically since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In the case of Kyrgyzstan, while just........

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