Uzbekistan International Affairs - The Times Of Central Asia

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Rise in Uzbekistan’s Foreign Trade Turnover

According to a report published by the Statistics Agency of Uzbekistan on the country's socio-economic situation for the first half of 2024, the gross domestic product amounted to 567.4 trillion UZS ($44.93 billion), an increase of 6.4% compared to the same period last year. The industrial network grew by 7.8%; agriculture, forestry, and fisheries by 3.8%, and construction by 10.1%. Local enterprises produced industrial products worth 370.0 trillion UZS ($29.30 billion) and the volume of agricultural, forestry, and fishery products totalled 170,297.3 billion UZS ($13.49 billion). The rate of inflation in Uzbekistan's consumer sector was 5.2%. Foreign trade turnover amounted to $31,828.2 million, an increase of $2,486.7 million or 8.5% compared to 2023. Exports reached $12,992.7 million, an increase of 5.5%, and imports, reached $18,835.5 million, an increase of 10.6% compared to the previous year. In July 1, 2024, 455,600 enterprises (excluding farms and peasant farms) were operating in the country, of which 387,100 are small enterprises and micro firms. Between January and June, 42,400 new enterprises and organizations were established, of which 41,000 were small enterprises and micro firms, and by July, of the 13,880 enterprises operating with foreign capital, 4,221 were joint ventures, and 9,659, solely international.

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Defense Central Asia Uzbekistan International Affairs Local Politics Business & Economy Uzbekistan Business & Economy Uzbekistan International Affairs Uzbekistan Local Politics

Uzbekistan Launches NATO-Standard Armored Vehicle

As reported by Uzbekistan 24, the Uzbekistan Defense Industry Agency has developed a new armored military vehicle, "Arslon," which is built to NATO standards. The vehicle, which weighs over 30 tons, can accommodate eight paratroopers and a crew of three. Its front is designed to protect against 30 mm armor-piercing shells. The side armor is capable of repelling 4.5-mm-caliber bullets. “In creating this armored personnel carrier, the parameters provided by NATO standards were considered. This is a national product created in Uzbekistan in cooperation with enterprises that produce high-quality components,” said Akmal Karimov, a company representative.

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Central Asia Uzbekistan Turkmenistan International Affairs Turkmenistan International Affairs Turkmenistan Business & Economy Kazakhstan International Affairs Uzbekistan Business & Economy Kazakhstan Business & Economy Kazakhstan Business & Economy Uzbekistan International Affairs

Kazakhstan, Iran, Turkmenistan and Russia to Develop North-South Transport Corridor

On July 19 - 20, the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan organized its first meeting on the North-South transit and trade corridor in Aktau attended by delegations from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Turkmenistan, UAE, Iran, Iraq, Oman, and Uzbekistan. By connecting Russia and Belarus to ports in the Persian Gulf, with further access to India, the North-South transport corridor will broaden prospects for trade and become a key engine for Kazakhstan's economic development. During the meeting, Kazakhstan, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Russia signed a roadmap for the development of the eastern route of the North-South transport corridor from 2024 to 2025, aimed to increase the corridor's throughput to 15 million tons of cargo annually by 2027 and 20 million tons by 2030. Kazakh Minister of Transport Marat Karabaev commented: “Kazakhstan intends to continue its active participation in the development of the Eastern branch of the North-South corridor, which has the highest potential for growth in cargo flows until 2030 and appears to be the safest and shortest transit route to the Indian Ocean. Therefore, it is necessary to begin the practical implementation of the Roadmap signed today for the synchronous development of the eastern route of the North-South corridor passing through the territories of Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Iran.”

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Central Asia Uzbekistan International Affairs Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan International Affairs Business & Economy Uzbekistan Business & Economy Kyrgyzstan Business & Economy Uzbekistan International Affairs Kyrgyzstan Features

Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan Launch Joint Projects, Seek to Increase Trade

On July 18, Kyrgyzstan's president Sadyr Japarov arrived on a state visit to Uzbekistan and held talks with his compatriot Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Tashkent. Mirziyoyev immediately emphasized that the state visit of the Kyrgyz president opens a new chapter in multifaceted Uzbek-Kyrgyz cooperation. The negotiations centered on measures to increase bilateral trade turnover, primarily through import substitution programs and industrial cooperation projects. The parties agreed to establish trading houses in Bishkek and Tashkent, form a portfolio of export-import contracts aiming to increase bilateral trade to $2 billion in the coming years, and launch a “green-light corridor” for the accelerated transportation of agricultural produce and livestock products. As the portfolio of ongoing industrial cooperation projects has already reached $300 million, the parties agreed to increase the authorized capital of the Uzbek-Kyrgyz Fund to $200 million to boost the financing of such projects. Identifying cooperation in the energy sector as strategically important, the two leaders spoke about an earlier signing of an agreement on joint construction of the Kambarata HPP-1 in Kyrgyzstan. This will allow for the construction of the hydropower plant to begin. Mirziyoyev commented: “We will take measures to speed up the signing of a trilateral [also with the participation of Kazakhstan] agreement on constructing the Kambarata-1 hydroelectric power plant. This megaproject will undoubtedly serve the sustainable development of our entire region.” Japarov emphasized that the key outcome of the negotiations was the signing of a Joint Statement on further deepening and expanding a comprehensive strategic partnership between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Japarov also stressed the importance of an earlier start to the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, which will be strategically important for strengthening the transport connectivity between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, as well as for the entire Central Asia region. Japarov and Mirziyoyev also participated in a video conference ceremony to launch joint Kyrgyz-Uzbek projects. The leaders officially launched the work of a plant for the assembly of cars, trucks, and buses in the Chui region of northern Kyrgyzstan. Construction of the joint Kyrgyz-Uzbek automobile plant to manufacture Chevrolet and Isuzu vehicles began in May 2023, and the first car rolled off its assembly line in May 2024. During the first year of operation, Uzbekistan’s UzAuto Motors will invest $50 million to assemble 10,000 cars. These cars will be the Chevrolet Cobalt, Onix, and Tracker. The presidents also launched a joint factory in Kara-Balta, northern Kyrgyzstan, to produce linen and knitwear products. The factory will produce 17 thousand tons of knitted fabric annually and 7 million pieces of knitted products. Finally, the presidents launched the construction of two photovoltaic power plants, each with a capacity of 200 MW, in Uzbekistan’s Fergana and Namangan regions. The electricity generated by the plants will be supplied to Kyrgyzstan.

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Saudi Islamic Development Bank Increasing Its Presence in Central Asia

The Saudi-based Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has been particularly active in Central Asia so far in 2024. The growing IDB role is part of Central Asian region’s foreign policy shift toward the Arab world as financial backers to replace Russia, which is devoting huge attention and resources to its war in Ukraine, and China, which is increasingly reluctant to spend large sums of money in Central Asia after pouring in tens of billions of dollars there during the last 25 years. Some of the Central Asian governments owe China substantial amounts of money that they are unlikely to be able to pay for possibly decades. The Central Asian states have been members of the IDB for many years. Kyrgyzstan was first, joining in 1993, followed by Turkmenistan in 1994, Kazakhstan in 1995, Tajikistan in 1996, and Uzbekistan in 2003. One of the IDB’s three regional offices is in Almaty, Kazakhstan (the other two are in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Rabat, Morocco). The IDB has been dealing individually with the five Central Asian countries on a wide range of projects and programs in recent months. Energy Resources In February, Tajik Minister of Economic Development and Trade Zavqi Zavqizoda announced a deal was reached for the IDB to provide $250 million to Tajikistan. Zavqizoda said $150 million of that would go toward construction of the Rogun hydropower plant (HPP). The Rogun HPP was a Soviet-era project. Construction started in 1976 but was discontinued shortly after the Soviet Union collapsed. Tajikistan restarted work on the HPP in 2008. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has repeatedly said that building the HPP with a planned 3600 MW capacity will make the country energy independent and even allow Tajikistan to bring in extra revenue exporting electricity to neighboring countries. In its 28 years as an IDB member, Tajikistan had received some $620 million from the IDB, so the $250 million announced in February 2024 represents a significant jump in IDB financial help. Not surprisingly, when IDB President Muhammad Al-Jasser visited Kyrgyzstan in June, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov sought IDB investment in the Kambar-Ata-1 HPP, another decades-old project with a multi-billion-dollar price tag that has barely made any progress in being realized during the 33 years Kyrgyzstan has been independent. Al-Jasser did not commit to IDB financing for the Kyrgyz HPP. However, less than a week after Al-Jasser was in Kyrgyzstan, the IDB was one of several international financial organizations that signed on at a conference in Vienna to be a members of a coordination donors’ committee for the Kambar-Ata-1 projects. At a meeting in Istanbul in February, the IDB reaffirmed its support for the Central Asia-South Asia-1000 (CASA-1000) project that aims to export electricity from HPPs in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Kyrgyz Energy Minister Taalaybek Ibrayev met with Al-Jasser in June during the latter’s visit to Kyrgyzstan to discuss funding for Kyrgyzstan’s section of CASA-1000. Not Only Energy In June, the IDB pledged up to $2 billion in funding for improvements to water management...

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Uzbekistan Sends Aid to Kyrgyzstan After Osh Region Floods

Following heavy flooding in Kyrgyzstan's Osh region on July 14, people in Uzbekistan's nearby Andijan region have sent 200 tons humanitarian aid to the people affected. The aid received in Osh includes household goods, construction materials, clothes and food. The flood resulted from torrential rains in the surrounding mountains and hills. Kyrgyzstan has suffered more than usual from extreme weather this summer. Last month nine people were killed by another flood in the Osh region.

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