Uzbekistan 1985
CIA Director William Casey, decided to extend destabilizing propaganda measures inside the borders of the Soviet Union. To this end, the CIA promoted the Muslim religion in Uzbekistan, by CIA commissioning a translation of the Quran into Uzbek by an Uzbek exile living in Germany, and then commissioning Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence to deliver 5,000 copies.
According to author Steve Coll,
As Yousaf recalled it, Casey said that there was a large Muslim population across the Amu Darya that could be stirred to action and could "do a lot of damage to the Soviet Union". Casey said, according to Yousaf, "We should take the books and try to raise the local population against them, and you can also think of sending arms and ammunition if possible." If Casey spoke the words Yousaf attributed to him, without having a Presidential Finding and a notification for Congress, he was in violation of the Intelligence Authorization Act. Gates' account appears unambiguous, and Yousaf's recollections are precise. Casey had pursued covert action outside the boundaries of presidential authority, which he did in the Iran-Contra Affair.
Author Steve Coll cites a manuscript of Robert Gates as stating that Afghanistan-Uzbekistan cross-border operations were encouraged by William Casey. Most of Coll's support for the above assertions regarding the Qu'ran operation come from Pakistani General Mohammad Yousaf and Yousaf's book.
It is not clear what immediate effect these operations had. The Uzbek government is not in favor of Islamic fundamentalism, and, in 2005, took active steps to repress it.
Read more about this topic: CIA Activities In Uzbekistan