Uzbek president Karimov taken to hospital - government

Uzbek President Islam Karimov has been taken to hospital, the Uzbek government said in a statement on Sunday, Reuters reported.

Karimov, 78, whose ex-Soviet nation borders Afghanistan, has been Uzbek leader since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

"According to specialists, full health screening and further treatment will take a certain period of time," the statement said without providing further detail.