In his August 30 Independence Day address to his nation, Uzbek President Mirziyoyev spoke of how, when it comes to the country’s foreign policy, “the spirit of Central Asia” has now been recognized as an active concept, pointing out that “it has become a good tradition to hold regular meetings of Central Asian leaders.”
As for Afghanistan:
“In recent days, we have all been watching with concern what is happening in neighboring Afghanistan. We support the speedy establishment of peace and stability in this country. We believe that Afghanistan can serve as a bridge between Central and South Asia to strengthen the interconnectedness. In our relations with Afghanistan, we remain committed to the principles of maintaining friendly and good-neighborly relations and non-interference in internal affairs,” he said. “We believe that the transition of power in this country should be carried out peacefully on the basis of national accord, taking into account the universally recognized norms of international law.”
He noted that the “open, pragmatic and practical foreign policy” pursued by Uzbekistan as a nation since it became independent 30 years ago, with much “economic diplomacy” included, has led the country to reach agreements with Russia, China, South Korea, Japan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries, with “new steps … in pragmatic cooperation with the United States and the West.”
“In 2019, Uzbekistan became a full member of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States; we have established ‘effective relations’ in a short period of time with the Eurasian Economic Union, becoming an observer state of that group; last year we chaired the Commonwealth of Independent States for the first time; and next year, Uzbekistan will take over the chairmanship of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization,” he reported.
