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The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has published its Special 301 Report for 2024 on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property. This annual report details the USTR’s review of more than 100 trading partners after significant research and extensive engagement with stakeholders, and the latest iteration holds very positive news for Uzbekistan. According to the report, the USTR removed Uzbekistan from its Watch List this year because of sustained progress on long-standing issues pertaining to intellectual property (IP) protection and enforcement. For example, Uzbekistan enacted new Customs Code amendments that introduce ex officio authority to suspend and seize counterfeit imports and exports. Uzbekistan also continues to give high-level political attention to IP - including support for and participation in the Intellectual Property Working Group under the U.S.-Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement. It was reported that the removal of Ukraine from the watch list was delayed due to the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war. The USTR continues to engage trading partners to address IP protection and enforcement concerns, including through bilateral cooperation through Trade and Investment Frameworks (TIFAs) and other mechanisms. Examples of cooperation include deals with Armenia, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Paraguay, Peru, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
The Asian Women's Forum will be held in Samarkand this May, where participants will discuss the situation surrounding women's rights in the countries of Central and Southeast Asia. The forum will discuss issues related to expanding women's rights, and reducing poverty in the region by involving women in entrepreneurship. Sessions will pay special attention to the role of parliaments in stimulating women's participation in business, gender-oriented budgeting, elimination of gender disparity, and eradication of all forms of violence against women and children. The participants will also focus on modern approaches and best practices in promoting the green economy, the impact of climate change on gender issues in the region -- as well as protection of women's rights and interests. Women are now a driving force in all aspects of life in Central Asia. Addressing the 78th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York, Chairwoman of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis (bicameral parliament) of Uzbekistan Tanzila Narbayeva said that "the attitude towards women has fundamentally changed in the country. Much attention is [being] paid to their education, mastering professions and foreign languages -- as well as to the development of women's entrepreneurship." To date, Uzbekistan has adopted more than 40 legal and regulatory acts to improve the status of women in society, established the National Agency for Social Protection, which, among other things, provides targeted assistance to women and works specifically on the social adaptation of women returned from conflict zones in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.
The first meeting of the working group on the development of the multimodal transport corridor Belarus–Russia–Kazakhstan–Uzbekistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan took place in Termez, Uzbekistan on 23 April. Attended by each of the countries’ ministers of transport, the meeting focused on connections between Central Asian states and the CIS through Uzbekistan with South Asia. According to the Uzbek Transport Ministry, the resulting roadmap, signed by all parties, aims to increase transit cargo transportation through Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan through the introduction of digital documents to speed up and simplify processing. In recent years, the volume of transit cargo through Afghanistan has increased by over 30%, reaching almost 1 million tons. Following a transit trade agreement between Uzbekistan and Pakistan in 2021, cargo volumes have increased significantly and in 2022, cargo transportation between the two countries through Afghanistan increased 2.5-fold. This year, Uzbekistan plans to transport more than 1 million tons of cargo through Afghanistan to Pakistan.
Russian state nuclear power corporation Rosatom is ready to offer lower-capacity nuclear power plant (NPP) projects to Uzbekistan. That's according to comments made by Denis Manturov, Russia's Minister of Trade and Industry, at the fourth annual international industrial exhibition, Innoprom, Central Asia. “Currently, the Rosatom state corporation and the Uzatom agency are working out the general contract for the construction of a nuclear power plant. This is a large-scale and complex project. Rosatom is ready to offer Uzbekistan additional solutions, including solutions related to low-power nuclear power plants,” Manturov said. According to Manturov, who is also a Deputy Prime Minister, the site for the construction of the NPP has already been chosen, and the spot is located near Tuzkon Lake in the Jizzakh region, which studies have confirmed is a favorable place. In addition, the optimal technical configuration for the project has already been determined. Rosatom plans to build a complex consisting of two power units with VVER-1200 reactors. “Now, together with Uzbek and international experts, technical issues related to the integration of the nuclear power plant into the energy system, cooperation with renewable energy sources, reducing the volume of water for the use of the plant and maximum production of electricity are being considered taking into account the climatic characteristics of the region,” Manturov stated.
An Action Plan has been signed to develop cooperation between the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change of Uzbekistan and the Association of Chinese Entrepreneurs in Uzbekistan. According to the ministry, the Plan covers a wide range of activities, including the construction of a waste incineration plant and the establishment of a high-tech industrial park (eco-industrial park). It also includes the introduction of an online environmental monitoring system for key polluting enterprises and the introduction of wastewater treatment technology. Alongside the Action Plan, ongoing cooperation between the parties will further the exchange of knowledge and best practices in combating desertification and creating green belts. In addition, the Ministry and the Association of Chinese Entrepreneurs reviewed proposals for the development of green technology projects, the recycling of household and solid waste, prevention of air pollution, and eco-tourism. The application of Chinese experience in landscaping desert areas and creating seedling farms was also discussed.
On April 22, a press conference was held at the U.S. Embassy in Uzbekistan with American air quality specialist and researcher Jay Turner speaking to media representatives about the air quality monitoring device installed at the embassy in Tashkent in 2018. According to Turner, the device monitors the concentration of air particles every hour: data is taken every 53 minutes, the remaining seven minutes are spent analyzing it, and the results are compared to the previous hour. Devices recently installed by Uzhydromet also monitor air quality hourly, and their data is roughly similar to that recorded at the U.S. Embassy. However, there are aspects that should be taken into account when comparing the results, says Turner. “It is required to follow certain protocols during the monitoring process. The equipment at the embassy follows these protocols, which I have checked myself. If we assume that Uzhydromet follows these protocols and submits its reports, it can be said that it will be the same as our data,” he said. Turner mentioned that work is currently underway to determine the differences between the monitoring devices. “To find an answer to this question, the U.S. State Department has allocated grant funds to Duke University and plans to install inexpensive air quality monitoring sensors throughout Tashkent. A portion of them has already been installed,” he stated.
