Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 26 arrived Uzbekistan for a two-day state visit to meet with his Uzbek counterpart, Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
Russian news agencies said Mirziyoyev met Putin on arrival in Tashkent in the evening and the two leaders travelled together in a single car.
Media reports say Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent, was decorated with flags of the two countries for the two-day visit.
The Uzbek presidential press service say the presidents discussed strengthening a “comprehensive strategic partnership and alliance” and the “development of trade and economic cooperation.”
Russia’s Interfax news agency reported yesterday that Russian President Vladimir Putin has noted that Uzbekistan is one of the first countries he visits after his inauguration as president and the formation of a new Russian government.
"This is one of my first visits following the elections [in Russia] and related procedures, including those aimed at forming the government. It is not accidental that such a representative delegation is visiting Uzbekistan. This underlines the special nature of our strategic partnership and allied relations," Putin said at the beginning of negotiations with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Tashkent.
For his part, Mirziyoyev reportedly said that the two heads of state have approved a 63-point cooperation roadmap, “which is genuinely being fulfilled.”
Uzbekistan estimates bilateral trade at $10 billion, he said, adding, "We are working together with colleagues to achieve the US$20-billion target in the near future."
The parties reportedly discussed various aspects of Russian-Uzbek relationships, including political, trade, economic, cultural, and humanitarian cooperation.
Russian news agencies quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as telling Russian television that Russia was open to broader cooperation on gas supplies with Uzbekistan. He reportedly said “the possibilities here are very extensive.”
The visit to Uzbekistan is Putin's third foreign trip since being inaugurated for a fifth term in May. He first went to China, where he expressed appreciation for China's proposals for talks to end the conflict in Ukraine, and later to Belarus where Russia has deployed tactical nuclear weapons.
The Russian leader has travelled abroad only infrequently since the start of Moscow’s so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine.
The International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest last March on suspicion of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. The Kremlin denies those allegations.
