On 24 January 2024, a landmark summit in Beijing saw President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan and President Xi Jinping of China elevate their bilateral relations to an “all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership.” This historic statement marks a new stage era of cooperation between the Central Asian nation and the global powerhouse.
The two leaders emphasized their commitment to developing this all-weather partnership, signifying a deep and unwavering bond between the two nations. The summit followed with a signing solid package of documents. These agreements cover a wide range of areas, including economic cooperation, transport, cultural exchange.
During the meeting, Xi Jinping stressed that in the current complicated international situation, both sides should support each other more firmly. “China firmly supports Uzbekistan in defending its national sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, and also firmly supports Uzbekistan in choosing its own path of development. Both sides should effectively use platforms such as the Intergovernmental Cooperation Committee to strengthen strategic communication and comprehensively deepen strategic mutual trust. China and Uzbekistan have similar development goals and consistent concepts, plans for cooperation in the field of economy, trade and investment,” the Chinese leader said.
The sides noted the dynamic development of trade, economic and investment cooperation between China and Uzbekistan. By the end of 2023, the trade turnover reached $ 14 billion. The heads of state expressed their mutual opinion on the availability of all opportunities to bring trade turnover to $ 20 billion in the near future.
In recent years, the volume of Chinese investments in the economy of Uzbekistan has increased fivefold, and the number of joint ventures has tripled.
The Chinese leader noted that both sides should also actively cooperate on poverty reduction, expand and deepen interregional cooperation and create more projects that benefit people.
An agreement was reached on the preparation and adoption of cooperation programs in the fields of infrastructure development, industrial cooperation, technology transfer in agriculture, solar and wind energy. In this context, it was noted that at the end of last year, two new solar power plants with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts were commissioned in Uzbekistan with the participation of Chinese companies.
The current level of fruitful financial and technical cooperation with leading Chinese banks and the Silk Road Fund, as well as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, was highly appreciated.
Mirziyoyev welcomed the agreements on expanding financial instruments to support investment projects, including the creation of a joint platform, as well as the decision of the Eximbank of China to open a regional office for Central Asia in Tashkent.
He also called on Chinese partners to actively participate in the privatization of state-run enterprises and banks in Uzbekistan.
The leaders welcomed the intensification of interregional exchanges. To coordinate cooperation in this direction, it was agreed to establish the Council of Regions of Uzbekistan and China.
The importance of the early start of practical work on the construction of the China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan railway was emphasized in order to turn Uzbekistan from a landlocked country into a land-connected country.
During the meeting, Xi and Mirziyoyev exchanged views on topical issues of the regional agenda and international politics.
Mirziyoyev stated that Uzbekistan firmly supports a series of global cooperation initiatives proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and is ready to work with China on their active implementation and promotion. He stressed that the China-Central Asia Summit in Xi’an, held in May last year, was of historical importance for strengthening regional ties, development and prosperity, and Uzbekistan is ready to work closely with China to create the secretariat of the China-Central Asia mechanism, as well as cooperate with China on the SCO platform and within other multilateral structures.
Uzbekistan has confirmed its unwavering position on supporting the “one China” policy and the fight against the “three forces of evil”.
Signed documents
Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Xi Jinping signed a joint statement on raising bilateral relations to the level of an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership in a new era.
The following documents were signed by the sides:
- Agreement between the Government of Uzbekistan and the Government of China on cooperation in the field of environmental protection;
- Agreement between the Government of Uzbekistan and the Government of China on technical and economic cooperation;
- Agreement between Government of Uzbekistan and the Government of China on cooperation in the development of human resources;
- Agreement Government of Uzbekistan and the Government of China on cooperation between State scientific research institutions;
- Cooperation Agreement between the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Education of China in the field of Chinese language teaching;
- Protocol between the Ministry of Agriculture of Uzbekistan and the General Customs Administration of China on phytosanitary requirements and controls for the export of peas from Uzbekistan to China;
- Protocol between the Ministry of Transport of Uzbekistan and the State Committee for Reforms and Development of China on deepening cooperation on China–Central Asia–Europe Railway Express trains;
- Protocol between the Ministry of Economy and Finance of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Commerce of China on the development of cooperation in the field of new electric vehicles;
- Protocol of Intent between the Ministry of Poverty Reduction and Employment of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China on cooperation in the field of poverty reduction;
- Protocol on Cooperation between the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Science and Technology of China on further strengthening scientific and technical cooperation;
- Protocol between the Agency for Technical Regulation of Uzbekistan and the Standardization Administration of China on cooperation in the field of standardization;
- Agreement between the Ministry of Transport of Uzbekistan and the Civil Aviation Administration of China on the joint construction of the Air Silk Road;
- Plan of cooperation in the field of tourism between the Committee on Tourism under the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China for 2024-2026;
- Agreement on the establishment of partnership relations between Tashkent Region and Shaanxi Province;
- Agreement on the establishment of partnership relations between the cities of Samarkand and Qingdao. (and other documents).
///nCa, 25 January 2024