DUSHANBE, June 28 2012, Asia-Plus -- Authorities in Uzbekistan have reintroduced exit-visa regimes for Uzbek nationals traveling to Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, in an apparent move to limit travel to the neighboring Central Asian states, Radio Liberty’s Uzbek Service reported on June 27.

Officials did not elaborate on the reasons behind the move to reinstate exit visas to the two countries, with whom Uzbekistan has had sometimes tense relations.

State-run media said the new regulation has been in effect since June 1, but there was no previous official announcement.

Since its 1991 independence, authoritarian-ruled Uzbekistan has kept in place Soviet-era exit-visa regimes for its citizens who wish to travel abroad.

However, the government has eliminated such requirements for Uzbek nationals visiting member states of the post-Soviet Commonwealth of Independent States, which includes Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.