Answer: All are true

Business entertaining

When dining with an Uzbek business associate, be aware that bread can have a special significance. Do not put your slice on the plate face-down or use a knife to cut it.

Drinking vodka is usually expected, but your host will not be offended if you politely decline the offer. Toasts, however, are frequent, and expect to do your share. Avoid toasting to anything but family or good friends; leave business matters out of it.

Tea not only begins a meal but ends it as well. Your cup will remain half-filled at all times but when it is a good time for you to depart, your Uzbek associate will fill it to the top. At the end of a meal, your host might give the amin gesture, placing their hands over their face and then moving them in a downward gesture, to signal its completion. Do not continue to eat if this occurs.

Shake hands for greetings and departures, but never do so under a doorframe. Say thank you, or rahmat, to your host as your hand covers your heart. This gesture symbolizes gracious friendship.

Excerpted from the Living Abroad report on Uzbekistan / Business practices / Business entertaining.

Written by Michael Cadden, SGMS-T, VP International Operations