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According to the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Uzbek Foreign Ministry has called upon the Russian Ambassador, Oleg Malginov, expressing concern over the proposal made by Zakhar Prilepin, co-chairman of the Fair Russia – For Truth Party, regarding the Republic’s potential accession to the Russian Federation. The Uzbek Ministry emphasized that such a proposal is deliberately provocative and could have adverse effects on the relationship between the peoples of both countries. "During the meeting, the representative of Russia was informed in principle that in our country the statement of the co-chairman of the Fair Russia - For Truth Party, Zakhar Prilepin, at a conference at the Rossiya Segodnya press center regarding a proposal to annex the territory of Uzbekistan to Russia was received with a sense of deep concern," the statement says, noting that such thoughtless remarks by party leaders of a friendly country such as the Russian Federation do not correspond to the spirit of comprehensive strategic partnership and alliance between Uzbekistan and Russia. In turn, Malginov "with full responsibility" stated that Prilepin's remarks do not reflect the official position of the leadership of the Russian Federation "in relation to friendly and independent Uzbekistan." The Ambassador emphasized that the “sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Uzbekistan have never been questioned." Malginov also noted that the Russian Foreign Ministry plans to comment on this incident in the near future. Prilepin has previously proposed the annexation of Uzbekistan and other territories of the former USSR to Russia, stating that "Since two million of your citizens are on our territory, we claim your territory. Because most of your people are here… Who will forbid us to do anything useful on the territory of the Eurasian territory after the parade in Kiev? No one," Prilepin has also said that he would continue to promote the topic of "disavowing documentation about the collapse of the Soviet Union." Deputies from Uzbekistan asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to send a letter warning about criminal liability for encroachments on the constitutional system of Uzbekistan.
Uzbekistan and China will jointly produce charging stations for electric vehicles, said the Uzbek Ministry of Energy. During its visit to China last week, a delegation of the Uzbek Research Institute of Renewable Energy Sources and the Henan Suda company discussed the implementation of a project for the production of electric charging stations and the exchange of the necessary technologies. As a result, they signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of infrastructure for electric transport. Henan Suda is a Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer based in the Henan Province. According to the agreement, by 2033 it is planned to install more than 70 centralized and 50,000 non-centralized charging stations throughout Uzbekistan. They will provide energy to over 700,000 electric vehicles. According to a presidential decree issued a year ago, Uzbekistan plans to install 2,500 charging stations for electric vehicles across the country by the end of 2024. Their presence will become mandatory for all new gas stations, business centers, hotels, shopping and entertainment centers.
Iran has lifted visa requirements for visitors from 33 countries, including Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Russia, in an attempt to attract visitors from across the globe and boost its sanctions-hit economy, Iranian news agencies report. Iranian Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts, Ezzatollah Zarghami, said the cancellation of the visa requirements was approved in a government meeting last week. “The government intends to open the country's doors to the world,” Zarghami told reporters after a cabinet meeting on December 13th. According to the Ministry of Tourism of Iran, the number of foreign visitors in Iran reached 4.4 million during the first eight months of the current Iranian year, which ends in March 2024, representing a 50%increase compared to the same period last year. The ministry expects six million foreign tourists to visit the country by the end of the year.
As reported by the President Mirziyoyev’s official website, on December 19th, the opening ceremony of a monument symbolizing the efforts of the international community to combat corruption was held at the Tashkent City International Business Center. The ceremony was attended by the President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, as well as Assistant Secretary General of the UN, Alexander Zuev. The twelve-meter transparent metal composition in the form of a hand pointing upward with open fingers represents honesty and purity of actions and thoughts, absolute rejection of corruption, and a call to countries around the world to unite in the fight against it. On the same day, President Mirziyoyev spoke at a ceremony presenting the International Anti-Corruption Excellence Award in Tashkent. Mirziyoyev expressed his gratitude to the founder of this prestigious award, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime for their proposal to hold this event in Uzbekistan. In his speech, President Mirziyoyev said that “in New Uzbekistan, where democratic reforms have become irreversible, we have also set ambitious plans and tasks to combat corruption.” Mirziyoyev stated that Uzbekistan is committed to mobilize all possible efforts with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and international partners. He also said that Uzbekistan will develop and implement the National Anti-Corruption Strategy 2030. “We appreciate the role of the mass media, who are on the front-lines in the fight against corruption,” Mirziyoyev added. “In this regard, we believe that you will support our proposal to hold a Global Media Forum that aims to effectively harness the power of journalists in the fight against corruption and to increase their influence.”
Uzbekistan to Drill Deeper for Natural Gas A government meeting chaired by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on December 18th discussed the country’s geological exploration program for 2024. At the meeting, it was stated that work is being carried out in two directions: maintaining natural gas production volumes at existing fields and discovering new reserves. In recent years, the depth of geological exploration has been increased from 2-3 kilometers to 4-5 kilometers. As a result, new gas reserves were discovered and an additional 4.4 billion cubic meters were produced. An international consulting company was also involved in this work, which helped to identify many promising areas. Next year, it is planned to carry out seismic work on an area of 3,500 square kilometers and drill new exploratory wells. The meeting considered the ways to transition geological drilling to a depth of 6-7 kilometers using advanced technologies. The issue of attracting foreign investment in the sector was also discussed. In recent years, Uzbekistan’s natural gas industry has experienced problems due to the depletion of reserves at existing fields. This year, Uzbekistan started importing natural gas from Russia through Kazakhstan.
As part of a government program to encourage the installation of low-power solar panels (up to 50 kW) in households in regions of Uzbekistan, citizens are to be provided with a subsidy for electrical energy produced by solar panels. For electricity produced by solar panels installed on properties and facilities owned by individuals, a subsidy of 1,000 Uzbek som (0.081U$) is to be allocated for every kilowatt-hour of surplus electrical energy transferred to the national power grid, the Uzbek Energy Ministry said. Persons who have installed renewable energy sources are also exempt from land tax and property tax. Individuals and legal entities who have installed renewable energy sources with a total capacity of up to 100 kW are exempt from paying the property tax from such devices, land tax on plots occupied by devices, and profit tax for electricity sold by legal entities to the national power grid for a period of three years from the date of their commissioning and when installing electricity storage systems with a capacity of at least 25% of the installed capacity of solar panels for ten years. In recent years, Uzbekistan has experienced increasing electricity shortages, especially in the cold winter months, as the country’s population grows and natural gas reserves are depleting. This has prompted the Uzbek government to embark on a large-scale program to introduce renewable energy sources (wind and solar power plants).
