On Thursday May 26, Tajik Minister of Economic Development and Trade Zavqi Zavqizoda met here with Uzbek First Deputy Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Laziz Qudratov.
The press center of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade ((MoEDT) says the parties discussed state and prospects of further expansion of trade and economic cooperation between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
They, in particular, discussed the launch of joint ventures in Tajikistan’s free economic zones (FEZs), expansion of the bilateral cooperation in the fields of investment, industry energy, transportation and agriculture.
Zavqizoda and Qudratov also discussed issues related to the harmonization of the draft protocol of the 9th session of the Tajik-Uzbek intergovernmental commission for trade and economic cooperation, the implementation of the protocol of the previous session of the joint commission for trade and economic cooperation and preparations for the next session of the joint commission for trade and economic cooperation, the MoEDT press center said.
Zavqizoda and Qudratov are co-chairpersons of the Tajik-Uzbek intergovernmental commission for trade and economic cooperation.
As it was noted during the meeting, the bilateral trade between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan has increased 37 times over the past six years. Meanwhile, over the first four months of this year, the bilateral trade between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan has valued at 173.6 million U.S. dollars, which is 40.5 million U.S. dollars or 30.4 percent more than in the same period last year.
Relations between the countries have become warmer after Shavkat Mirziyoyev came to power in Uzbekistan in 2016. Mirziyoyev has said that improving ties with Central Asian nations is a major priority of Uzbekistan’s foreign policy.
Emomali Rahmon and Shavkat Mirziyoyev have met several times since September 2016 and in March 2018, Mirziyoyev made an historic visit to Dushanbe, where 27 bilateral agreements were signed in the fields of trade, economy, investment, finance, transport and transit, agriculture, water and energy, taxes, customs, tourism, education and science, health, culture, interregional cooperation, in the field of security and countering crime.
Earlier in April 2018, Uzbekistan's national airline resumed flights from Tashkent to Dushanbe after a hiatus of some 25 years. The air communication between Dushanbe and Tashkent was cut off in 1992 at Tashkent’s initiative and the issue of resumption of the direct air communication between the two countries has been raised at meetings between state officials of the two countries more than once.
27 bilateral governmental agreements addressing bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan in industry, education, border security, agriculture and much else were signed during President’s Rahmon’s state visit to Uzbekistan in August 2018. 36 other cooperation agreements were signed between the two countries in Dushanbe on June 10, 20221 during an official visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Tajikistan.
