Pak-Uzbek common objective is to lift nations from poverty, benefit from strong bilateral trade: PM Imran

“Uzbekistan can benefit from Pakistan’s geo-strategic location, a market of 220 million people and providing access to Middle East and Africa, While Pakistan can have access to Central Asian States through Uzbekistan, an important country of the region,” he remarked.

The premier was addressing a joint press conference with the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev after holding an in-depth discussion on various issues of mutual interest.

The PM is visiting Uzbekistan on the invitation of  President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Stressing on the importance of economic cooperation, he said the two countries were following similar visions of new Uzbekistan and new Pakistan to lift their people out of poverty through a welfare state.

The Prime Minister said that it was a model of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) who established the first welfare state and ensured inclusive development by taking care of the poor and downtrodden.

He mentioned that China pursued the same strategy to lift their people out of poverty.

The Prime Minister said that Pakistan with a shift in its from geo-strategic to geo-economics wanted to strengthen its trade and economic relations, adding, Pakistan’s strong trade relations with Uzbekistan, which is a big country in Central Asia, would be a win-win for the two countries.

He said that Pakistan’s seriousness to have strong trade and economic relations could be gauged from the visit of biggest-ever country’s trade delegation comprising over 130 large business houses.

The Prime Minister said that when he was leaving for Tashkent, he received messages from a number of Pakistani businessmen expressing their desire to be part of the delegation.

He welcomed the agreements signed between the two countries’ private sectors and said it was very important and would benefit the two countries.

The Prime Minister said that Pakistan wanted to benefit from the expertise of Uzbekistan, which manufactured agricultural implements.

Besides, he said, Pakistan had also sought help and cooperation from Uzbekistan in cotton seed.

Lauding the passion of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on a railway project from Pakistan to Uzbekistan through Peshawar, Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif, the Prime Minister said it was very project for regional connectivity and assured that his government will fully pursue and push for realization of the project.

Imran Khan said that during the talks the two sides also discussed the situation in Afghanistan, adding, as the brotherly people of Afghanistan were suffering from hardships for the last 40 years, now there should be peace and peaceful settlement.

He said that the two sides also agreed to arrange a meeting of Foreign Ministers of Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Iran and Turkey before a summit level meeting to discuss Afghan situation and find a way to avoid civil war in the brotherly country.

The Prime Minister further said that in order to strengthen cultural relations between Pakistan and Uzbekistan, the two sides have decided to make a film on Zaheeruddin Babar, a ruler of Mughal era in Hindustan, which was a super power of that time and owned 25% of the world’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

He said that the youth of Pakistan and Uzbekistan must know the history and culture of Muslims and their its leaders, adding, they can also make films on Allama Muhammad Iqbal, Mirza Ghalib and Imam Bukhari.

The Prime Minister said that when people of the two countries will get closer through enhanced cultural exchanges and relations, he will also introduce and work for the promotion of cricket in Uzbekistan.

Joint declaration

As per the Joint Declaration on the Establishment of Strategic Partnership between the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan,  the leaders of the two countries exchanged views on the current status of bilateral relations in all areas of mutual interest and agreed to further strengthen their multifaceted ties in political, trade and economic, energy, communication, science and technology, education and cultural spheres.

The two leaders also exchanged views on issues of international and regional significance including the situation related to COVID-19 and agreed to build further cooperation in this regard.

Reaffirming their commitment to strengthening fraternal ties, based on religious, cultural and historical commonalities, the leaders expressed satisfaction at the continued progress in bilateral relations and announced the establishment of a strategic partnership for mutual benefit of the two countries and nations.

Noting that Pakistan was among the first countries to recognize the independence of the Republic of Uzbekistan in 1991, the leaders congratulated each other on approaching the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two brotherly countries and agreed to celebrate it in a befitting manner.

The leaders agreed to expand multifaceted bilateral cooperation in all areas of mutual interest and stressed the importance of closer coordination based on coinciding positions in the international arena. To this end, the leaders decided to use the existing political and economic mechanisms between the two countries, including consultations between Ministries of Foreign Affairs.

The leaders expressed satisfaction with the growing pace of inter-parliamentary cooperation and agreed on the regular exchange of parliamentary delegations to further deepen bilateral ties.

The Pakistan side highly appreciated the results of the visit of the parliamentary delegation of the Republic of Uzbekistan to Islamabad in June 2021 to attend the 2nd meeting of ECO Parliamentary Assembly. The Uzbek side confirmed the invitation to the Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan Mr. S. Sanjrani to pay a visit to Uzbekistan.

The Prime Minister underlined the importance of structured engagement between Pakistan and Uzbekistan under the five pillars of Pakistan’s “Vision Central Asia” policy i.e political, trade and investment, energy and connectivity, security and defence, and people-to-people contacts.

The Prime Minister also outlined his vision of “Naya” Pakistan embedded in values of social justice, education for all, peace, prosperity and economic development of the people.

The leaders expressed satisfaction at the level of bilateral cooperation within the framework of international organizations and reaffirmed their commitment to continue supporting each other in the UN, SCO, OIC, ECO and other international and regional forums on issues of mutual interest.

As members of the UN Human Rights Council, the Parties expressed their readiness for joint action to suppress violations of human rights and counter Islamophobia, as well as strengthening interfaith harmony.

The PM emphasized on the urgent need for peaceful resolution of all outstanding regional disputes and conflicts to fully utilize the enormous potential of connectivity between Central Asia and South Asia

The two sides noted with satisfaction that over the 20 years of its activity, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has taken a significant place in international and regional organizations, and contributed in promoting security, stability and sustainable development of the region.

The importance of further strengthening cooperation at the SCO and multifaceted cooperation between the member states were emphasized. In this context, the parties agreed to collaborate and support in promoting the initiatives of the two countries aimed at deepening interaction within the SCO.

The leaders discussed the security situation in detail in Afghanistan and the ongoing peace process. The parties stressed the necessity to resolve the conflict through Afghan-led and Afghan-owned political process through peaceful and inclusive negotiations resulting in comprehensive political settlement.

President of Uzbekistan highly appreciated the role of Pakistan in promoting the peace process in Afghanistan and Pakistan’s contributions to socio-economic development of Afghanistan. Prime Minister of Pakistan hailed Uzbekistan's efforts for the socio-economic reconstruction of Afghanistan through the implementation of a number of significant projects, the main one of which is the construction of the Termez-Mazar-i-Sharif – Kabul – Peshawar railway.

Both leaders expressed their readiness to maintain a regular dialogue and build constructive cooperation in the field of security and defence. Expressing satisfaction with the level of cooperation between the Defence Ministries, the leaders agreed to continue cooperation in conducting joint military exercises and trainings, as well as in the field of vocational training and the exchange of professional expertise between the militaries of the two countries.

The parties expressed their readiness to expand cooperation between the law enforcement agencies of the two countries, in particular, in the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking.

The leaders agreed that trade and economic cooperation is a key priority for strengthening the partnership between the two countries.

Recognizing the enormous economic potential to further build up mutually beneficial relations, the parties agreed to increase the volume of bilateral trade through diversification of trade, expansion of business contacts, exchange of trade delegations and simplification of the visa regime.

The parties welcomed the signing of the Agreement on Transit Trade as an important tool for expanding bilateral trade.

Both leaders noted the importance of regular meetings of the Joint Uzbek-Pakistan Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic and Scientific and Technical cooperation.

The parties emphasized the role of the Joint Business Council between the two countries and agreed to establish direct business ties between Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the private sector. They also agreed to organize trade exhibitions and business forums on regular basis to promote bilateral trade.

The leaders recognized the necessity to create a more conducive environment for investors in the two countries, in particular, to encourage and facilitate joint investments, confirmed the existence of broad opportunities for cooperation in the fields of agriculture, pharmaceuticals, textile, leather and chemical industries, energy, and information technology and agreed to develop mutual cooperation in these sectors.

The parties highly appreciated the results of the Uzbekistan-Pakistan Trade, Investment and Connectivity Conference held on 15 July 2021 as instrumental in providing fresh impetus for further development of trade, economic and investment ties between the two countries.

The leaders stressed the importance of regional integration and connectivity as a cornerstone of economic development and progress. In this regard, they welcomed the exchange of high-level visits in the areas of trade, railways, transport and aviation.

The two leaders reiterated their support for the Termez-Mazar-i-Sharif – Kabul – Peshawar railway project as an important initiative to create a rail link from Central Asia to the Arabian Sea through Afghanistan and the Pakistani seaports of Karachi, Gwadar and Bin Qasim.

The parties also welcomed the proposed expedition of representatives of the relevant ministries and departments of Uzbekistan and Pakistan along the route of the railway line in near future with appropriate security measures for the representatives of both sides.

The two leaders also recognized immense potential of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor for the benefit of the entire Central Asian region and beyond entailing greater connectivity and trade linkages through a network of transport, fiber optic cable, energy pipelines, and investment opportunities in its SEZs.

The two leaders welcomed the resumption of direct regular flights between Pakistan and Uzbekistan.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Prime Minister Imran Khan noted long-standing cultural, historical, religious and spiritual ties between the two countries. The leaders decided to further expand cultural ties and people-to-people contacts and welcomed proposals to develop cooperation between leading universities, research institutes, libraries and museums of the two countries, as well as to conduct joint research on the legacy of the Baburids.

The President of Uzbekistan highly appreciated the opening of Centers for the Study of the heritage of Alisher Navoi and Zahiriddin Muhammad Babur at the Punjab and Peshawar Universities of Pakistan and welcomed the establishment of cooperation with the Alisher Navoi and Babur Foundations in Uzbekistan.

The leaders reaffirmed to establish cooperation in the tourism sector, in particular, and recognized spiritual/Ziyarat tourism as a priority area of ​​common interest.

Both leaders expressed support for the joint initiatives and collective efforts of the OIC to promote a tolerant and enlightened Islam, welcomed the declaration of March 15th as International Day to combat Islamophobia, and agreed to work towards the designation of this Day by the UN General Assembly.

The parties, having highly appreciated the beginning of cooperation in academic and cultural research, agreed to early commencement of the work on the compilation of an Islamic Encyclopedia by Uzbek and Pakistani researchers and experts. They expressed confidence that the publication of this fundamental work will be a great contribution of Uzbekistan and Pakistan to the promotion of modern Islamic civilization and interfaith understanding and harmony.

The parties welcomed the signing of a number of important MoUs/Agreements, which will serve to further strengthen the comprehensive cooperation between the two countries in diverse areas.

The leaders expressed their conviction that the agreements reached during the visit will contribute to the further deepening of the bilateral strategic partnership and development of cooperation within the framework of multilateral formats. They agreed to continue high-level political dialogue in the future.

President of Uzbekistan Mr. Shavkat Mirziyoyev thanked Prime Minister Imran Khan for participation in the International High-Level Conference “Central and South Asia: Regional Connectivity - Challenges and Opportunities (July 15-16 2021, Tashkent).”

The Prime Minister expressed gratitude to the Uzbek side for the cordial and warm welcome extended to the Pakistan delegation in Uzbekistan and invited the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Mr. Shavkat Mirziyoyev to visit Pakistan at a convenient time. Uzbek side accepted the invitation with appreciation. The dates of the visit will be agreed through diplomatic channels.

This declaration was signed on July 15, 2021, in Tashkent in duplicate in Uzbek and English.