Tashkent is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. It is located on the Chirchiq River in the foothills of the Tianshan. It is the main industrial and cultural and scientific center of the country and one of the largest cities in Central Asia.

During World War II, in March and August 1942, more than 115,000 people (including 78,000 soldiers) crossed from the USSR into Iran via Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, or about 10% of the Poles deported from the Eastern Borderlands into the USSR after September 17, 1939. In the town of Yangiyoʻl in the Tashkent vilayet, in the first half of 1942, the headquarters and most of the units of General Wladyslaw Anders' army were stationed, which were then transported to Iran.