06.08.2021

On August 6, the Third Consultative Meeting of the Heads of States of Central Asia took place. The event was held in the national tourist zone «Awaza», Turkmenistan.

The Summit chaired by the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov was attended by the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sadyr Japarov and the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, as well as the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Central Asia, the head of the Regional Center on Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia Natalia Gherman.

Central Asia is a region of great geostrategic and geo-economic importance. More than 74 million people reside in this region. The history and culture of the peoples, the economy and infrastructure of the countries of the region are closely interconnected.

As the Leader of Uzbekistan has repeatedly noted, the countries of the region have the main goal – to turn Central Asia into a stable, economically developed and prosperous region through joint efforts. To achieve this goal, as well as to realize in full the potential of the region, strengthen the relations of mutual trust, good-neighborliness and cooperation, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in 2017 has taken the initiative to organize a Consultative Meeting of the Heads of States of Central Asia.

This initiative, which meets the fundamental interests of the fraternal peoples of our countries, received broad support and quickly became a reality. The first Summit of Leaders took place in March 2018 in the capital of Kazakhstan, Nur-Sultan, and the second in November 2019 in Tashkent.

The next Summit in Awaza was also very rich in substance and informative.

The President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev has noted in his speech that thanks to common political will and joint efforts, today our region is becoming a space of good-neighborliness, mutually beneficial cooperation and sustainable development.

«In the formation of a new political atmosphere here, it is difficult to overestimate the role of the Consultative Meetings of the Heads of States of Central Asia. Our regular meetings at the top-level allow us to fully realize the unique potential of the region», - said Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

President has expressed his vision on topical issues and put forward a number of proposals.

It was noted that present-day realities require decisive steps to form a new model of economic cooperation in Central Asia. It is important to identify new points of growth, new drivers of development for the long term.

The need to build up the intraregional trade was emphasized, and in order to move to a full-fledged free trade regime, it is important to remove the existing barriers. Long value chains can be created through the development of industrial cooperation, innovation and digital technologies

It was noted that for this, direct business contacts between entrepreneurs and regions of our countries should be encouraged, and investment and economic forums should be held regularly.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has said that the time has come for the adoption of an Agreement on general directions of regional trade and economic cooperation.

It is in the common strategic interests of the Central Asian countries to effectively use the transport and transit potential of the region. An extensive and integrated transport system can become a key transit hub on the Eurasian continent.

In this regard, our President called for the fullest possible loading of the existing transport corridors and infrastructure, including the ports of the Caspian Sea, large cross-border logistics centers.

In addition, in the future, Uzbekistan expects to use the possibilities of the Trans-Afghan corridor «Termez – Mazar-e-Sharif – Kabul – Peshawar», the road and railways «China – Kyrgyzstan – Uzbekistan».

The importance of the resumption of the full-fledged transport communication in compliance with sanitary requirements was also emphasized.

The issues of energy security of the region are becoming even more urgent in terms of the growth of national economies and population. In this regard, it is necessary to continue efforts to form a common energy space, paying special attention to the advanced implementation of «green» energy and energy-efficient technologies.

The President of Uzbekistan has proposed to intensify the activities of the Electricity Coordination Council of Central Asian countries, expanding its mandate and powers, as well as the level of representation of countries.

The attention of the meeting participants was drawn to the aggravation of the problems of providing the population with food products in the context of a pandemic. In some regions of the world, there is a rise in prices and a shortage of food commodities.

Our President supporting the initiative to hold regular meetings of the ministers of agriculture of the countries of region, proposed to include in the agenda of their first meeting the issue of introducing a regional food security monitoring system.

This will make it possible to identify the specific directions and joint programs to increase the food production and control their quality, including deliveries to the world market.

The issues of close coordination and mutual assistance in the fight against the pandemic were also touched upon.

For this purpose, Shavkat Mirziyoyev has proposed to launch a unified information system for the recognition of test results and vaccination certificates, increase the expertise exchange in the field of prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases, training of medical workers, establish scientific cooperation in the field of pharmacology and cooperation in the production of vital medicines.

The Leader of Uzbekistan has emphasized that the focus should always be on the environmental problems of the region. It is necessary to expand the scale of cooperation, to take all possible measures to mitigate the consequences of the Aral Sea disaster.

In this context, the President of Uzbekistan proposed to develop a regional program «Green Agenda» for Central Asia, which would contribute to the adaptation of our countries to climate change, as well as the wider introduction of resource-saving technologies.

President has stressed the importance of strengthening the ties of our region with other large regions of the world. He thanked the Heads of States for the support and active participation of the delegations of their countries in the work of the International Conference on the Connectivity of Central and South Asia recently held in Tashkent.

They expressed confidence that a special resolution of the UN General Assembly on this issue will be adopted through joint efforts, as well as the active participation of the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia in this issue.

«We all understand what young people play an important role in the development of our countries, which make up the majority of the population in the region. Today, when the struggle for the minds and hearts of the young generation continues throughout the world, we need to educate our youth in the spirit of patriotism, respect for national and universal values, the youth on whom the future of Central Asia depends», - Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.

President has proposed to hold a Central Asian Youth Forum in Uzbekistan next year, which will be an important step towards forming a platform for strengthening trust and friendship, an interactive dialogue between representatives of governments and young people of our countries.

An important factor in strengthening the fraternal relations of our peoples is the further development of the common cultural and civilizational space.

The President of Uzbekistan stressed the importance of regular organization of festivals, days of culture and cinema, joint publication of books on the cultural heritage of Central Asia.

Another effective factor contributing to bringing our peoples closer together is the tourism sector. It is important to actively apply additional incentives to increase the intraregional tourist exchange.

President has proposed to start the practical implementation of the joint program «One Tour – The Entire Region» covering the full range of tourism products.

«Today’s Summit acquires a special significance due to the fact that it is taking place on the eve of a significant event - the 30th anniversary of the independence of our states».

«These years were difficult for all of us. The main conclusion is that only together, supporting each other, we can achieve a solution to the problems we face, ensure the sustainable development of the region and increase the well-being of the population. There is no other alternative!» - President Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted.

The importance of ensuring a stable and irreversible character to the processes of regional cooperation, wider use of the potential of «people’s diplomacy», parliaments, civil society institutions and the media fields for these purposes was emphasized.

«We welcome the further development of the Central Asian Women Caucus, the expansion of contacts to achieve the global goals in the field of gender equality», - Shavkat Mirziyoyev emphasized.

Taking into account the growing role of parliamentarism, the President of our country proposed to hold a Regional Parliamentary Forum in Tashkent.

Concluding his speech, President has expressed confidence that the results of the Consultative Meeting will become a worthy contribution to the further strengthening of the multifaceted partnerships of the fraternal peoples of Central Asia.