Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan discuss boosting cooperation in industry, energy, agriculture, SMBs

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

Officials from Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have held a number of meetings to discuss the development of cooperation in the fields of industry, energy, agriculture, investment, and SMBs.

A meeting was held between Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov with Uzbekistan's Investment and Trade Minister, Deputy Prime Minister Sardor Umurzakov.

During the meeting, the parties noted the high level of Azerbaijani-Uzbek relations, the importance of mutual official visits of the presidents, and negotiations in the development of relations.

They emphasized that the successful implementation of the action plan to develop cooperation between the two countries makes a significant contribution to the expansion of bilateral relations.

Moreover, the meeting was held between Azerbaijan's Agency for Small and Medium Business Development Board Chairman Orkhan Mammadov with the Commissioner for Protection of Rights and Legitimate Interests of Entrepreneurship under the President of Uzbekistan D. S. Kasimov.

The sides discussed the mechanisms of legal support for business and the possibility of sharing experiences in this area.

On June 20, an Azerbaijani-Uzbek business forum was held in Tashkent ahead of the visit of President Ilham Aliyev to Uzbekistan. Within the forum, a number of agreements on the implementation of joint projects, trade contracts worth over $500 million, as well as 10 agreements on practical cooperation between ministries and agencies of the two countries were signed.

The volume of trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan amounted to $111.9 million in 2021. Presently, around 195 Azerbaijani enterprises are represented in Uzbekistan, 69 of which have joint capital and 126 of them have 100 percent Azerbaijani capital.