Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans to visit Uzbekistan by the end of August – around the time he heads for the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov, who was in Delhi on an official visit, confirmed the news. India and Uzbekistan have also agreed to expand their strategic partnership by strengthening co-operation in critical minerals, mining, trade, energy, infrastructure, defence and education.
This was discussed during Saidov’s official visit to Delhi, where he met External Affairs Minister Jaishankar. “During our meeting, we reviewed in detail the strategic partnership between the two countries, with focus on energy, infrastructure, trade, defence, education and culture,” said Jaishankar. “We also discussed key regional challenges and exchanged views on expanding our multilateral co-operation”.
Jaishankar also spoke about the long-standing historical, cultural and civilisational ties between the two nations and said that Uzbekistan was an important neighbour of India. “The main focus of our talks was on implementing the tasks set by the heads of our states, consistently advancing bilateral co-operation across all areas, as well as addressing the regional and international issues of today,” concurred Saidov. “We also held discussions on expanding trade, economic and investment co-operation, strengthening transport and logistics connectivity and further enhancing collaboration in other areas.”
The two ministers also stressed that the two countries shared similar perspectives on terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking. “I appreciate Uzbekistan’s firm stand against terrorism and its policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism – including the cross-border version, as also terror sanctuaries,” affirmed Jaishankar, adding that India appreciated Uzbekistan’s support of India’s initiatives during its BRICS Presidency. He also confirmed India’s support for Uzbekistan’s candidature to chair the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) for 2027-29.
Interestingly, more than 3,000 Uzbek officials, professionals and students have benefitted from the Indian Technical & Economic Co-operation (ITEC) programme and scholarship schemes. Over 16,000 Indian students are now enrolled in various universities across Uzbekistan.
Doubling bilateral trade
Meanwhile, Piyush Goyal, minister for commerce & industry, has stated that India and Uzbekistan intend to double bilateral trade during the next three years, which could be achieved by co-investing, co-manufacturing and co-innovating. The trade between the two nations stands at $1.5 billion at present.
Goyal remarked that the partnership between the two countries was based on mutual trust, respect and a shared vision for prosperity that offers opportunities for expanding trade, investment and economic co-operation. The two nations have signed bilateral investment treaties in areas where trade can be enhanced – such as pharmaceuticals, mining, textiles, amongst others.
“Bilateral trade between our two nations has grown by 30 per cent and we hope it will reach $2 billion next year and try to reach $5 billion in the coming years,” said Laziz Kudratov, minister of investment, industry & trade, Uzbekistan. “We also hope to improve market access, streamline procedures and reduce administrative barriers. We are working on a new agreement and memorandum of trade facilitation between the two nations. Uzbekistan is open for businesses; the number of its active companies has increased five-fold and FDI has grown 10 times since 2017”.
An India-Uzbekistan Investment Forum was organised by FICCI, jointly with the ministry for commerce & industry, India, as also the ministry for investment, industry & trade, Uzbekistan. Emphasising that trade must lead the bilateral relationship, Goyal urged businesses to seize the opportunity to build enduring commercial partnerships. He called for eliminating trade barriers, promoting mutual recognition of standards, approvals, testing and certification processes, integrating customs systems through greater digitalisation, and creating more efficient trade routes to facilitate commerce.
“This is your moment,” exhorted Goyal, while addressing industry leaders. “Co-invest, co-manufacture and co-innovate. Build partnerships that are everlasting and which have given companies on both sides scale, resilience and prosperity for the two economies and the people of Uzbekistan and India”.
Goyal also underlined India’s readiness to collaborate with Uzbekistan in information technology and the digital economy. He assured that India would be happy to work with Uzbekistan to develop digital public infrastructure and strengthen co-operation in areas such as fin-tech, agri-tech and med-tech. He further noted that engineering components, advanced manufacturing, automotive components and automobiles are also offering promising avenues for future collaboration.