Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan: Building Interregional Cooperation

Today, as part of the second day of the national exhibition of Uzbek goods, the II Turkmen-Uzbek interregional forum was held with the participation of heads of trade, financial structures, regional administrations and representatives of the private sector of the two countries.

Our countries have enormous potential for diversifying areas of cooperation of a constructive nature and joint implementation of large promising projects. In this context, the current meeting is intended to expand targeted partnership.

As noted by speakers from the Turkmen side, the organization of such events, which have already become traditional, testifies to the inviolability of the bonds of friendship between our countries and peoples. The heads of Turkmenistan and the Republic of Uzbekistan attach great importance to the consistent development and strengthening of relations of mutual understanding and good-neighbourliness: decisions at summit meetings give new impetus to bilateral dialogue.

In this regard, the intensification of interregional cooperation is one of the priorities. For these purposes, the 1st interregional forum was organized in Bukhara in 2022, and an exhibition of goods of Turkmenistan was held in Tashkent in July of this year.

At the same time, solid practice of cooperation has been developed in the agricultural sector, chemical, textile and food industries, in the production of building materials, as well as in the transport, logistics and tourism industries.

In the context of maximum use of the potential of interstate partnership, joint Trading Houses were opened in Ashgabat and Tashkent, and, in addition, the construction of the border Turkmen-Uzbek Trade Centre is ongoing at the Dashoguz-Shavat checkpoint, which will simplify trade operations, intensify socio-cultural interaction and will have a positive impact on the dynamics of economic growth in the regions.

In turn, the expansion of border trade will give impetus to the development of the adjacent territories of our countries. The construction of new and modernization of existing highways, railway lines, warehouses and other infrastructure facilities has a positive effect on strengthening the economies of the Lebap and Dashoguz velayats of Turkmenistan, as well as the Bukhara and Horezm regions of the Republic of Uzbekistan. In general, the creation of border trade zones opens up vast horizons for the activation of small and medium-sized businesses.

Cultural and humanitarian interaction is also developing at an accelerated pace: representatives of the spheres of science, education, culture, sports and tourism of the two states maintain close ties, which is an indicator of the strengthening of business and humanitarian contacts between our countries and peoples in these areas.

Meetings at the regional level occupy a key position in the structure of interstate relations, as they act as an operating platform for expanding and developing new vectors of mutually beneficial cooperation. Participants from the Uzbek side noted the importance of the current forum and national exhibition of goods of the Republic of Uzbekistan in establishing productive ties between the business circles of the two countries and discussing promising areas of partnership.

The forum is a platform for considering issues of cooperation and enriching it with new content, which will give impetus to increasing interstate strategic interaction.

At the same time, attention was focused on the steady growth rate of trade turnover between the Republic of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. The quality of interregional partnership is significantly positively affected by the benefits provided to businessmen of both countries. In this regard, the Uzbek side expressed its readiness to increase the volume of trade.

The forum participants expressed words of sincere gratitude to the President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirzayev for their significant personal contribution to strengthening friendly interstate relations, for assistance in holding such events.

The forum also included meetings between representatives of both countries, during which issues of expanding cross-border trade, economic and trade and investment cooperation, implementing joint projects and intensifying dialogue between the business circles of the two countries were discussed.