On April 12, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev received credentials from the Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Palestine Javad Awad, Japan Takashi Hatori, the State of Qatar Hassan Hamza Hashim, the Slovak Republic Viktor Borecky and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Ahmad Farooq.

The President of Uzbekistan warmly welcomed the newly appointed heads of diplomatic missions and congratulated them on the beginning of their activities in Uzbekistan.

The President noted that New Uzbekistan, pursuing an open and pragmatic foreign policy, is reaching new heights in the international arena, gaining more and more friends and reliable partners. New embassies are opening in the country. The geography of Uzbekistan’s diplomatic presence abroad is expanding. Recently, the country’s embassies were opened in Sweden and Hungary, and the diplomatic mission of the State of Qatar began operating in Tashkent.

Speaking about the process of renewal of the country, the Leader of Uzbekistan dwelled on the essence and goals of the reforms carried out in recent years to build a legal democratic state, develop a free civil society based on the principle of “person – society – state”.

Such large-scale changes require a radical reform of the country, a consistent implementation of a set of political, economic and administrative reforms. A big step in this direction is the process of updating the Constitution in accordance with the realities of New Uzbekistan.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted that in the course of work on the new version of the Basic Law, a wide public discussion was held. Proposals from experienced specialists and scientists, foreign partners, specialized international institutions and think tanks were taken into account.

The Leader of Uzbekistan emphasized the growing importance of pursuing a foreign policy based on mutual trust and respect with all countries in a difficult international situation characterized by growing contradictions and conflicts.

As noted, Uzbekistan is deepening partnership with leading international and regional organizations, global financial institutions, effectively presides over the Organization of Turkic States and will host the summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization this year for the first time. It is planned to hold more than ten major international events.

“We are determined to become a more open and sincere partner for the international community. In this regard, we have the political will, determination and, most importantly, opportunities and sufficient potential”, the President said.

The Head of state dwelled on promising areas for the development of multifaceted and mutually beneficial cooperation with the countries represented by the newly appointed ambassadors.

Palestine is one of the traditional partners of Uzbekistan in the Middle East. Our peoples have been closely linked for centuries by bonds of friendship, common religious and cultural values.

The presence of significant potential for cooperation in agriculture, production of building materials, pharmaceuticals and textiles was noted.

It was proposed to organize visits of representatives of Palestinian state organizations and private businesses to Uzbekistan to develop mutually beneficial exchanges.

Addressing the Ambassador of Japan, the Head of state stressed that Tokyo is a time-tested strategic partner of Uzbekistan, relations with which are developing in the spirit of mutual trust.

It was noted with satisfaction that Japan is actively involved in the technological modernization of the economy, industry and infrastructure of Uzbekistan. The Uzbekistan – Japan summit held in December 2019 was a historic event, which laid a solid foundation for long-term cooperation.

Regular contacts at the highest level and between ministries demonstrate the high interest of the parties in enhancing practical cooperation. The planned multilateral events, interaction within the framework of the UN and other international organizations, and the dialogue “Central Asia – Japan” are important in the consistent continuation of cooperation between the two countries.

The State of Qatar is a close friendly country with great authority and influence not only in the Arab-Muslim, but throughout the world.

The President highly appreciated the great achievements of Qatar under the leadership of Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, congratulated on the successful holding of the FIFA World Cup and the UN Conference on Least Developed Countries in Doha.

Assessing the prospects for cooperation, the Head of state noted the presence of great potential opportunities.

Confidence was expressed that upcoming Uzbekistan – Qatar summit will become a historic step in raising relations between the two countries to a qualitatively new level.

As noted, large-scale joint projects in energy, mining, chemistry, agriculture, construction, ecological tourism and pharmaceuticals will be of great importance in strengthening trade and economic cooperation.

Uzbekistan sees Slovakia as one of the promising partners in the European Union with significant economic potential.

The President expressed satisfaction that the relations between Uzbekistan and Slovakia, based on the principles of friendship and mutual respect, are progressively developing, enriched with new projects and specific programs.

This is evidenced by the growth in recent years in the volume of mutual trade and the number of joint ventures by 2 times.

Uzbekistan is interested in the joint implementation of specific projects in the investment, including with leading companies in the medical, pharmaceutical and chemical industries.

Relations with Pakistan, whose political, economic and military potential is steadily growing, have risen to the level of strategic partnership thanks to regular contacts between the leaders of the two countries.

Cooperation is developing rapidly in transport, agriculture, light industry, pharmaceuticals and other industries. An action plan has been adopted to increase the volume of mutual trade to $1 billion shortly.

It was noted that joint efforts to promote the economic recovery of Afghanistan, including the early start of the construction project of the Trans-Afghan railway, will serve to strengthen the connectivity of South and Central Asia.

The Head of state thanked the Pakistani side for supporting the initiative to create an International Negotiation Group on Afghanistan under the auspices of the UN.

Following his speech, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan wished the newly appointed heads of foreign diplomatic missions success in their responsible activities.

Within the framework of the event, short conversations were held with each ambassador. Foreign diplomats, on behalf of the first persons of the countries they represent, conveyed sincere greetings and words of respect to the President and the people of Uzbekistan.

They expressed deep gratitude for the conditions created for the implementation of their diplomatic mission in Uzbekistan, as well as for the warm welcome and special attention at today’s event.

The ambassadors noted that the specific proposals and initiatives put forward by the President are of great practical importance in the development of mutually beneficial relations, and expressed their readiness to apply all their efforts and experience for further developing full-scale cooperation and effective partnership with Uzbekistan.

UzA