On 4 April this year, Tashkent hosted a meeting between the Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan Laziz Kudratov and the Minister for Government Affairs of the United Arab Emirates Muhammad bin Abdullah al-Gergawi, who is in our country on an official visit.

During the meeting, the current state and prospects for building up bilateral partnerships in trade, economic and investment areas, as well as further steps in the framework of ongoing projects to improve the efficiency of public administration in Uzbekistan, were discussed.

The positive dynamics of growth in the volume of mutual trade was noted, the indicators of which doubled in the last year. Among the tasks already implemented to maintain such positive dynamics, a multiple increase in flights between the two countries was noted - up to 44 flights per week. The importance of taking systematic measures to further expand the range of mutual deliveries was noted. In this regard, the parties agreed to intensify cooperation in the framework of the preparation of the Strategy for the Development of the Export Potential of Uzbekistan.

The meeting also considered the prospects for infrastructure development and increasing the industrial potential of the regions of our country. The Emirati side highly appreciated the new stage of reforms to reduce the state’s share in the economy, and expressed its readiness to expand cooperation in the preparation of master plans for cities and regions, taking into account the development of production capacities and the improvement of the public utilities sector.

Issues of improving the efficiency of public administration and the widespread introduction of information technologies were discussed separately. In this context, the parties came to a common opinion on the need to form a Council for the Development of Cooperation in the Field of Artificial Intelligence.

Following the results of the talks, the parties emphasized the importance of deepening active interaction between the responsible bodies of the two countries in order to successfully implement the discussed projects and initiatives.