Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Norov has met with the EU Special Envoy for Afghanistan Tomas Niklasson, who arrived in Uzbekistan to attend the International Conference “Afghanistan: Security and Economic Development”, Uzbekistan MFA reports.

Tomas Niklasson noted that the European Union fully supports the regional policy and initiatives of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to strengthen friendship, trust and mutually beneficial cooperation in Central Asia.

Current issues of interaction between Uzbekistan and the EU were discussed. The parties welcomed the initialing of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (EPCA) between Uzbekistan and the European Union and noted the need for signing this important document as soon as possible.

Views were exchanged on the current situation in Afghanistan.

According to Tomas Niklasson, Brussels highly appreciates the political and diplomatic efforts and the special role of Uzbekistan in the settlement of the Afghan problem. The interest of the European Union in continuing a regular dialogue with Tashkent on the regional agenda was reported.

The European side noted the timeliness of holding an international conference on Afghanistan. It was emphasized that the high level of participants in the event testifies to the key role of Uzbekistan and the recognition of the efforts of the country in the Afghan settlement.

UzA