Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Shavkat Mirziyoyev take part in meeting of Supreme Interstate Council of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan

AKIPRESS.COM – President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev took part in the meeting of the Supreme Interstate Council of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

The sides key discussed expanding cooperation between the two countries in the trade and economic, transport and transit, water management and energy, cultural and humanitarian spheres.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said the countries signed a historic agreement on allied relations last year. Today, the countries are expected to sign a strategic partnership development program for the next 10 years. He expressed hope these important steps would give an impetus to the development of ties between the two states.

According to the President of Kazakhstan, the two countries have an opportunity to quickly increase trade turnover to $5 billion and double this figure in the near future. He said that fully unlocking the potential for cooperation in sectors of agriculture, mechanical engineering, energy, communications, and digitalization was important.

“It is necessary to launch the International Industrial Cooperation Center “Central Asia” on the Kazakh-Uzbek border as soon as possible. We expect significant results from the activities of the Intergovernmental Council and the Interregional Cooperation Forum. We have high hopes for industrial cooperation. Today, we have about 70 joint projects worth over $3 billion, which created more than 14,000 jobs. We are ready to further deepen cooperation in this area and create comfortable conditions for business,” the head of state emphasized.

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev believes it is necessary to use unique transit and transport advantages as effectively as possible. He called the joint development of measures to optimize tariffs, simplify administrative procedures and reduce cargo delivery times an important task.

In addition, the parties considered issues of integrated and rational use of water resources of transboundary rivers, strengthening cultural and humanitarian cooperation at the meeting.

The President of Uzbekistan expressed confidence that this state visit to Kazakhstan will take strategic partnership and alliance to a qualitatively new level.

According to Shavkat Mirziyoyev, a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission, a business forum and a number of cultural events were held on the eve of the visit. A strategic partnership program until 2034 has been prepared. A Council is created under the leadership of the Foreign Ministers, which will have a positive impact on strengthening bilateral cooperation.

The need to increase the effectiveness of contacts at the level of parliaments, governments, foreign policy and industry departments of the two countries was noted. The parties agreed on mutual support within international and regional structures, including through the UN, WTO, consultative meetings of the heads of state of Central Asia and the “Central Asia+” format.