Uzbek official and visiting Taliban delegation held talks in the Uzbek border city of Termez yesterday to discuss a series of issues, including economic ties, border security and humanitarian aid, Uzbekistan’s Minitry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) says.
According to Radio Liberty, the Taliban delegation, led by the Taliban’s acting Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Salam Hanafi, arrived in Termez for the talks on October 16.
The TOLOnews agency quoted Hanafi as saying that the Taliban delegation included officials from the ministries of economy, trade, higher education, public health, and the Afghanistan Civil Aviation Authority, as well as a number of businessmen, according to RFE/RL.
The Uzbek delegation was reportedly led by Deputy Prime Minister Sardor Umurzakov, who also is the Central Asian country’s investments and foreign trade minister.
During the talks, the two sides discussed issues related to trade and economic cooperation, border security, cooperation in the energy sector, international cargo transportation and transit, the Uzbek MFA notes.
The construction of a railway connecting Termez to the Pakistani city of Peshawar via Afghanistan’s Mazar-e Sharif and the capital, Kabul, was also high on the agenda of the meeting, the statement said.
The delegation returned to Kabul on the same day.
