Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev today held a virtual summit. This was the first bilateral Virtual Summit between India and a central Asian country. The leaders discussed the entire spectrum of bilateral relationship, including strengthening of India-Uzbekistan cooperation in the post-COVID world. They also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

 
In his opening remarks, Mr Modi said, India and Uzbekistan are two rich civilizations and both have been in constant contact since ancient times. He said, there is a lot of similarity in the understanding and approach of both countries to the challenges and opportunities of the region. Mr Modi said, the relationship between India and Uzbekistan has been very strong.

 
The Prime Minister said, India and Uzbekistan have similar concerns about Extremism, Fundamentalism and Separatism. He said, both nations stand strongly against Terrorism. Mr Modi said, India and Uzbekistan also have a similar approach on regional security issues. He said, both agree that the restoration of peace in Afghanistan requires a process that is led, owned and controlled by Afghanistan itself. Mr Modi said, India and Uzbekistan together took the initiative of India-Central Asia Dialogue.

 
He said, India-Uzbekistan economic partnership has also strengthened over the years. Mr Modi said, India also wants to further intensify the development partnership with Uzbekistan. The Prime Minister said, India is ready to share its expertise and experience as per Uzbekistan’s development priorities. He said, India has great potential in areas such as infrastructure, IT, education, health, training and capacity building, which can be useful for Uzbekistan. Mr Modi said, establishment of Joint Working Group on agriculture is an important and positive step.
 
The Prime Minister said, our security partnership is becoming a strong pillar of bilateral relations and the first joint military exercise of armed forces of both countries was held last year. He said, the joint efforts are also increasing in the areas of space and atomic energy.
Mr Mirziyoyev thanked India for its support during the Covid-19 pandemic.
 

India and Uzbekistan have continued to maintain high level exchanges in the recent past. The visits of Prime Minister Modi to Uzbekistan in 2015 and 2016 and President Mirziyoyev to India in 2018 and 2019 have imparted a new dynamism to the strategic partnership.