Astana, February 19, 2024 – At the invitation of the Kazakh side, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Saidov made an official visit to Astana.
During the negotiations, Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Saidov discussed a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation, in particular, they considered the priority areas of political, economic, water-energy, transit-transport and cultural-humanitarian interaction between two countries.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan noted that, thanks to the political will of the heads of state, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are successfully building full-format interaction, which is based on brotherhood, equality, mutual respect and trust.

“Uzbekistan occupies a special place for Kazakhstan, is a reliable ally and an important strategic partner. We sincerely welcome and highly appreciate the new achievements of your country in many areas,” said M. Nurtleu.

The heads of foreign affairs departments reviewed in detail the practical implementation of the agreements reached within the framework of mutual state visits of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Astana in December 2021 and the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to Tashkent in December 2022.

The parties noted that a solid legal framework has been formed between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and the institutional foundations for a new format of interaction have been laid.The agreements on allied relations and border demarcation signed in Tashkent in 2022 laid a solid foundation for the harmonious development of relations between our countries.

The Supreme Interstate Council has been created, and the Council of Interparliamentary Cooperation has been operating since last year. On the agenda is the establishment of a Council of Foreign Ministers.

The heads of foreign affairs agencies especially noted the importance of further deepening economic cooperation.

Kazakhstan is one of the three largest trading partners of Uzbekistan. Thanks to the measures taken, in recent years bilateral trade turnover has consistently exceeded 4 billion US dollars.

The ministers agreed to promote the deepening of economic partnership, increasing mutual trade to 10 billion US dollars, and expanding business ties.

The importance of implementing the project for the construction of the International Center for Industrial Cooperation “Central Asia” on the Kazakh-Uzbek border was emphasized, the launch of which will contribute to the expansion of trade, economic and investment ties.

Particular attention was paid to the area of ​​industrial cooperation, where significant progress is being observed today. Thanks to the joint efforts of the governments of the two countries, 12 joint projects worth $156 million have been implemented. 21 new joint projects worth about $1 billion are being developed.

During the meeting, the parties also noted the need to intensify mutually beneficial cooperation in the fields of transport and logistics, energy, and water resources.

A separate item was considered on the development of cultural and humanitarian ties, which are the basis of strong and long-term relations between the two states.

Today, the friendship of the peoples of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan is a shining example of true good neighborliness and mutual respect. This task is met by plans to open branches of universities, which will provide new opportunities for strengthening ties between the younger generations of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

In order to revive spiritual values, it is proposed to conduct joint research to study and popularize the common cultural and humanitarian heritage.

During the meeting, the ministers “synchronized watches” on current issues on the regional and international agenda, confirmed their commitment to continue to closely cooperate within the framework of multilateral structures, and to provide mutual support in promoting the international initiatives of the two states.

They especially noted the importance of further cooperation in developing and deepening regional cooperation within the framework of the Consultative Meetings of the Heads of State of Central Asia.

During the official visit, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan B. Saidov was also received by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan K. Tokayev.