The meeting of the foreign ministers of Uzbekistan Abdulaziz Kamilov and Turkey Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, as well as the second meeting of the Strategic Planning Group chaired by the foreign ministers of the two countries, were held in Tashkent on March 9, the Uzbek Foreign Ministry reported.
Abdulaziz Kamilov and Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu discussed the ways t advance bilateral relations in the political, trade and economic, transport and communication, investment, tourism, cultural, humanitarian and other areas.
The counterparts also touched upon preparations for upcoming joint events, in particular the second meeting of the Uzbek-Turkish Council for Strategic Cooperation of the highest level. The first meeting of the council was held in February 2020 in Ankara. The Council operates under the co-chairmanship of the leaders of the two countries.
The foreign ministers exchanged views on strengthening the inter-parliamentary dialogue, improving the legal framework of bilateral relations and building up interregional cooperation.
The parties expressed mutual interest in enhancing interaction within the UN, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Cooperation Council of Turkic-speaking States, the Economic Cooperation Organization and other multilateral structures.
Attention was also paid to expanding partnerships in the science and education, including the opening of a branch of Bahçeşehir University in Uzbekistan, as well as the establishment of the Fergana Higher School of Tourism together with the University named after Hoca Bayram Vali.
The Turkish side has been invited to the International High-Level Conference “Central and South Asia: Regional Connectivity. Challenges and opportunities”, Sharq Taronalari, Art of Bakhshi international festivals and other events in Uzbekistan.
After the meeting of the Strategic Planning Group, the heads of the foreign ministries signed a cooperation program between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan and Turkey for 2022-2023 and a Memorandum of Understanding in the field of translation services.
Earlier, the Turkish Consulate General was inaugurated in Samarkand on March 7.
