15.07.2021

On July 15 the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani, who arrived to our country to participate in the International Conference «Central and South Asia: Regional Connectivity. Challenges and Opportunities».

During the negotiations, the prospects for interaction on the regional security and sustainable development were considered.

The leaders of both countries once again stated the impossibility of a military solution to the Afghan conflict and called for the early resumption of inclusive inter-Afghan negotiations.

The President Shavkat Mirziyoyev confirmed the readiness of Uzbekistan to actively contribute to the achievement of sustainable peace in Afghanistan.

The sides noted the progressive development of bilateral trade and economic cooperation satisfactory. Despite the pandemic, the trade turnover between the two countries has increased by 50% in the first five months of this year. A hundred sixty enterprises with the participation of Afghan capital were newly created in Uzbekistan.

The importance of further promoting the joint transport and energy infrastructure projects aimed at both strengthening the connectivity between the regions of Central and South Asia and expanding the transit potential of Afghanistan, in particular, the implementation of projects for the construction of the Termez-Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar railway, as well as the construction of a new power line «Surkhan - Puli-Khumri» was noted.

The sides noted their firm commitment to the further development of the bilateral and regional cooperation, ensuring the practical implementation of the secured agreements.