The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan organized an information tour to the Aral Sea region for ambassadors and heads of diplomatic missions of international organizations accredited in the country.
The purpose of the visit to the Republic of Karakalpakstan is to raise awareness on the efforts undertaken by Uzbekistan to restore the ecology of the Aral Sea region and ensure sustainable development of the region, Kazinform reports.
Turkmenistan’s Ambassador to Tashkent, Yazguly Mammadov, was also among the participants of the tour. He shared his impressions about the trip in an interview with the Dunyo: “Today we arrived in Karakalpakstan, visited the city of Muynak and the cemetery of ships. A very impressive sight. We saw what a colossal, huge work has been done in the region to create forest plantations on the drained bottom of the Aral Sea.” The Turkmen envoy expressed hope that all these efforts will help preserve the ecosystem of the region.
Uzbekistan is implementing ambitious environmental projects to create 1.73 million hectares green zone on the dried-up bottom of the Aral Sea.
The government program “Save the Aral Sea” was launched in 2018 and over the past period 1.62 million hectares were planted with saxaul, tamarix and other desert plants.
In 2023 the zone will expand with another 100 thousand hectares of forest.
The environmental condition in the region surrounding the Aral Sea could dramatically improve if the project to plant green strips for up to 12 years proceeds well, says Uzbek experts. ///nCa, 5 April 2023 [photo credit – Kazinform, Dunyo]