This study analyzes the process of military and political subjugation of the Bukhara Emirate by the Russian Empire in the second half of the 19th century, specifically focusing on the legal consequences of the 1868 and 1873 treaties. The article illuminates the mechanisms of the Emirate's transformation from an independent state into an imperial protectorate, the annexation of the Zarafshan Valley and its hydropolitical implications, as well as the international and local legal aspects of the "vassal" status. The research methodology is based on historical-comparative analysis and the study of archival documents, relying on primary sources, including imperial chancellery correspondence and travelers' diaries. The results demonstrate that the Russian Empire, using not only military force but also economic (water control) and diplomatic (prohibition of foreign policy) instruments, de facto eliminated the sovereignty of Bukhara statehood, turning it into a "quasi-independent" entity.

Bukhara Emirate, Russian Empire, protectorate

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