On 3 December 2024, Tashkent hosted political consultations between Latvia and Uzbekistan, which were chaired by the Under Secretary, Political Director at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ivars Lasis, from the Latvian side, and by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Muzaffar Makhradinov, from the Uzbek side.
The officials discussed the matters of bilateral relations, including political dialogue, economic cooperation, covering cooperation in transport and logistics, information and communication technology, smart energy and other sectors, as well as cooperation in education and culture, and enhancement of the legal framework.
Uzbek colleagues praised Latvia’s support for the reform process in Uzbekistan, including within the framework of development cooperation policy. The partners expressed their satisfaction with the dynamic bilateral cooperation and agreed to further deepen the bilateral partnership.
Special attention was paid to the safety of Latvian citizens traveling to Uzbekistan. Ivars Lasis thanked Uzbekistan for its understanding in this matter, noting that the security of citizens is an essential prerequisite for strengthening contacts and cooperation.
The Political Director pointed out that Latvia is interested in a continued strengthening of economic relations, highlighting information and communication technologies, smart energy and green technologies as promising areas. Latvia is also interested in expanding cooperation in the field of transport and logistics. In this regard, a positive emphasis was placed on the presence of resident attachés from the Ministry of Transport and the Latvian Investment and Development Agency at the Embassy of Latvia in Tashkent.
The Uzbek officials especially highlighted the successful cooperation in the transfer of Latvia’s reform and modernization experience. In 2024, eight projects financed by Latvia are implemented in the country, covering areas such as good governance, economic growth, agriculture, gender equality, and climate. In addition, Latvian organizations and experts actively participate in various activities financed by third donors in support of Uzbekistan.
European Union-Uzbekistan relations were also discussed during the conversation, including the planned signing of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the two sides in the near future, which will expand the scope of relations and provide additional opportunities for cooperation between Latvia and Uzbekistan.
The officials discussed on cooperation among the Central Asian countries. They also exchanged views current global and regional issues, including Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the situation in Central Asia and Afghanistan. Political Director Ivars Lasis called on his Uzbek colleagues to continue work on reducing the circumvention of the sanctions against Russia and noted in this context, the good cooperation between the Latvian and Uzbek customs services.
During his visit to Tashkent, Ivars Lasis also met with Uzbekistan’s Acting Deputy Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade, Shokhrukh Gulamov, the Special Representative of the President for Afghanistan, Ismatulla Irgashev, the Director of the Central Asian International Institute, Javlon Vakhabov, members of the diplomatic corps, as well as implementers and partners of Latvian development cooperation projects in Uzbekistan.
The previous political consultations between Latvia and Uzbekistan took place on 22 June 2023 in Riga.
