President of Uzbekistan puts forward new initiatives to strengthen cooperation between Central Asia and the European Union

On April 4, the first Central Asia – European Union summit was held in Samarkand under the chairmanship of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

The event was also attended by President of the European Council António Costa, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sadyr Japarov, President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, as well as President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Odile Renaud-Basso and the leadership of the European Investment Bank.

In accordance with the agenda, the prospects for the development of multifaceted relations and practical interaction between the Central Asian states and the European Union were considered, and an exchange of views on current aspects of international and regional policy took place.

Particular attention was paid to the issues of expanding investment cooperation and increasing trade turnover, promoting joint programs and cooperation projects in the field of innovation, green energy, extractive industries, agriculture, transport, logistics and digitalization, continuing active exchanges in the field of culture, tourism, science, education and other priority areas.

Opening the event, the head of Uzbekistan emphasized with satisfaction that the relations between Central Asia and Europe, which have deep roots, are dynamically developing and strengthening.

Constructive and productive meetings held on the eve of the summit demonstrated the presence of political will and determination to deepen practical cooperation in the interests of the two regions.

The leader of our country expressed gratitude to the heads of the main political and economic institutions of the European Union for their comprehensive support for the processes of integration and sustainable development in Central Asia.

According to the President of Uzbekistan, thanks to the common political will, the deep transformation in the region has acquired a sustainable and irreversible character. Trust and good neighborliness are strengthening, full-scale cooperation and collaboration are expanding.

– Seven or eight years ago, there were not even prerequisites for this. The borders between individual countries were closed. There was no trade, no transit, no business, no humanitarian exchanges. Relations were simply frozen, – Shavkat Mirziyoyev emphasized.

In September of this year, the seventh Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of the region will be held in Tashkent, which is a platform for an open and constructive solution to all urgent tasks of the joint agenda.

The leader of Uzbekistan separately noted the historic event that took place the day before – the full settlement and signing of agreements on the delimitation of the State border between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

It was emphasized that today large investment and infrastructure projects are being jointly implemented in the region, to support which investment funds and companies operate. Intraregional trade is increasing, border trade zones are being created. All this contributes to the sustainable economic development of the region.

According to EBRD forecasts, the volume of regional GDP will increase to 6 percent this year, which is significantly higher than the average in other regions.

Particularly noted is the joint work on the formation of a common regional identity, as well as support for cultural, humanitarian and educational exchange. Branches of leading national educational institutions are opening in our countries. The project of a single Central Asian visa for foreign tourists is being promoted.

There is a noticeable intensification of interaction between the region and the European Union. Over the past seven years, the countries' trade turnover has increased several times, amounting to 54 billion euros. Effective cooperation platforms have been launched. Ministerial meetings, forums and summits are regularly held in all key areas.

The leader of Uzbekistan presented his vision of the priorities for the further development of cooperation in the medium and long term.

First of all, the importance of strengthening the political dialogue, the legal and institutional basis for multilateral cooperation was noted.

The need for joint adoption of comprehensive measures aimed at the practical implementation of the decision to establish a strategic partnership between Central Asia and the European Union was indicated.

It was proposed to consider the issue of signing a full-fledged Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation between the two regions in order to fill the strategic partnership with specific decisions, projects and programs.

The President of Uzbekistan also spoke in favor of holding regular meetings of the heads of foreign policy departments to "synchronize watches" on the international and regional agenda; the establishment of the Interparliamentary Cooperation Forum "Central Asia - EU" with the organization of the first event this fall in Uzbekistan; expanding cooperation between leading analytical centers.

In order to work systematically to ensure the timely implementation of the agreements, Uzbekistan expressed its readiness to assume the functions of the secretariat of the summit until the next meeting.

Investments in economic and technological modernization were defined as a priority dimension of interaction.

Today, the current portfolio of projects with leading European companies and banks exceeds 30 billion euros.

It was proposed to hold a separate session of "Investment Opportunities of Two Regions" during the next Tashkent Investment Forum with a presentation of the Concept of a Regional Industrial Park for European Companies in Uzbekistan.

The signing of the Agreement on the opening of the European Investment Bank office in Tashkent, which will stimulate the inflow of direct investment to Central Asia from EU countries, was noted with satisfaction.

The head of our state also put forward an initiative to launch an Investment Platform to promote large regional projects in the field of "green" energy, innovation, transport, infrastructure and the agricultural sector.

In addition, the President of Uzbekistan put forward a number of new initiatives. The issue concerns the conclusion of a multilateral Agreement on the Protection and Promotion of Investments; the launch of a joint Chamber of Commerce "Central Asia - EU", the adoption of a joint regional program to support small and medium-sized businesses and women's entrepreneurship projects.

The readiness to host the next Economic Forum and the Investor Forum on Transport Interconnectivity in Uzbekistan this year was noted.

Attention was also drawn to the expansion of technical assistance from the European Union to increase the potential of our exporters, the creation of laboratories and centers for standardization and certification.

Another promising area for mutually beneficial partnership is the deepening of cooperation and investment in the field of critical mineral resources.

Uzbekistan has positive experience of cooperation with leading European companies in this area. Meanwhile, the expansion of partnership in this area is hampered by the lack of effective transport corridors for the delivery of these products, as well as finished industrial and agricultural goods to the European market.

In this context, the need to develop coordinated measures and favorable conditions for the expansion and loading of the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor was emphasized.

“I am confident that these tasks are fully consistent with the goals of the pan-European Global Gateway program,” said the head of our state.

For these purposes, it was proposed to convene a meeting of transport ministers of the countries along this route under the auspices of the European Union to develop coordinated approaches.

Strategic importance is attached to investments in “green” energy and environmental sustainability.

It was noted that Uzbekistan fully supports the international project for the supply of electricity from the Central Asian region to Europe.

By 2030, our country plans to increase the share of renewable energy in the energy balance to 54 percent, introduce 24 thousand megawatts of “green” capacity.

The launch of the Central Asia-EU Partnership on “clean” energy could become an important platform for interaction in this area.

It was proposed to establish a working group to work out project financing and develop the carbon credit market.

Investments in human capital play an important role in developing cooperation between the two regions.

The introduction of special quotas for countries in the region within the framework of the Erasmus Plus Program for the training of highly qualified specialists will facilitate the achievement of this goal.

In addition, in order to expand scientific and educational cooperation with the countries of Central Asia, a readiness was expressed to open an office of the Horizon Europe program in Uzbekistan.

An initiative was put forward to develop a joint Program for scientific and technological exchange in the field of artificial intelligence, big data, digitalization and space research.

The President of Uzbekistan also made proposals to include countries in the region in the European Action Program in the field of digital education, as well as to implement a roadmap for partnership between leading universities.

In continuation of efforts to familiarize the world audience with the rich culture of our region, the importance of actively using the site of the upcoming UNESCO General Conference in Samarkand to promote the art of the peoples of Central Asia was especially emphasized.

This year, it is also planned to hold the first tourism forum "Central Asia - European Union" in Bukhara.

- We count on the assistance of European partners in implementing the concept of "One tour - the whole region" based on the implementation of the experience of EU countries, as well as considering the issue of simplifying the visa regime for tourists from our region, - said Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Cooperation in the fight against terrorism, extremism, radicalism, cybercrime, drug trafficking and illegal migration is relevant.

The proposal of European partners to launch a dialogue on counter-terrorism issues was supported.

The importance of continuing practical cooperation within the framework of the BOMCA and CADAP programs, as well as consultations on the peaceful development of Afghanistan was noted.

In order to implement mechanisms for the practical implementation of the initiatives and agreements put forward, the head of our state proposed establishing a Partnership Committee at the level of Deputy Prime Ministers in the "Central Asia - EU" format with annual meetings.

During the meeting, the heads of delegations made proposals to expand practical cooperation between the two regions.

Following the first summit, a Joint Declaration was adopted, providing for the establishment of a strategic partnership between the two regions, and a declaration on cooperation in the field of critical minerals.