Uzbekistan-China: 30 Years of Multifaceted And Fruitful Cooperation

January 2 marked the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Uzbekistan and the People’s Republic of China （PRC）. During this short historical period， modern interstate relations have been brought to the level of comprehensive strategic partnership， and the states have established mutually beneficial cooperation in almost all spheres.

Thirty years is only a moment in the thousands of years of history and friendly exchanges between countries. The history of relations between Uzbekistan and China dates back centuries， going back to the epoch of the Silk Road. The centuries-old relations that have developed continue to create a favorable ground for the formation of comprehensive cooperation between Uzbekistan and China at the present stage.

Especially in the recent five years， there has been a high dynamic of deepening multifaceted cooperation in virtually all areas， such as trade， investment， energy， transport communications and others.

This trend of dynamic development in relations is primarily associated with an active political dialogue， the presence of mutual interests in promoting economic cooperation and favorable conditions for strengthening cultural and humanitarian exchange.

At the same time， the large-scale reforms carried out in Uzbekistan in recent years， affecting almost all aspects of its development， have opened up new opportunities for expanding cooperation with China in various fields.

An active political dialogue at the highest level is the key factor in the high dynamics of the development of bilateral cooperation. The first state visit of President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to China in May 2017 and constructive and fruitful talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2018 within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization （SCO） Summit in Qingdao， as well as the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing in 2019， brought new impetus to strengthening multifaceted cooperation.

The two leaders continued their dialogue despite the pandemic. During telephone talks held on May 7， 2020， and on April 29 and October 27， 2021， President Mirziyoyev and President Xi reached agreements on active cooperation in the fight against COVID-19 and its consequences， and on intensifying cooperation in the areas of trade， investment， and the economy in the context of the pandemic.

In order to implement the agreements reached at the highest level， a number of bilateral negotiations took place at the intergovernmental level.

All conditions have been created for the qualitative promotion of inter-parliamentary relations between the two states. In March 2021， online negotiations were held between Chairman of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis of Uzbekistan Tanzila Narbayeva and Chairman of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee of China Li Zhanshu.

In May 2021， an online meeting was held between Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Abdulla Aripov and Premier of the State Council of China Li Keqiang. Following the talks， the sides discussed a whole range of issues related to further strengthening practical cooperation between the two countries in the areas of trade， economy， investment， finance， infrastructure projects， transport and energy.

In recent years， China has maintained its position as Uzbekistan’s largest trading partner. Before the pandemic， the annual volume of bilateral trade increased by an average of 30 to 40 percent. By the end of 2021， mutual trade exceeded $7.4 billion.

China is the largest export market for Uzbek goods. In 2021， China’s share in the total volume of Uzbekistan’s foreign trade was 17.7 percent. There is not only a quantitative， but also a qualitative change in the structure of trade turnover. This positive trend is primarily due to an increase in the volumes and names of finished products and agricultural goods supplied from Uzbekistan to the Chinese market.

The annual growth of Chinese investments in Uzbekistan ranges from 40 to 50 percent. Today， China’s direct investment， along with the capital of other leading partners of Uzbekistan， is actively present in almost all sectors of the Uzbek economy.

Among them are oil and gas， chemicals， construction materials， pharmaceuticals， agricultural sector， light industry and others. The total volume of Chinese investments in 2017-21 amounted to $8 billion， including$1.53 billion in 2021.

Continuing the fight against the lingering pandemic remains among the most important tasks for this year， by improving the quality of work， refining the material and technical base of sanitary and epidemiological services， and creating modern laboratories.

The opening of the Uzbek-Chinese Center of Traditional Medicine in Tashkent in June 2020， the first of its kind in Central Asia， was an important result of the interaction between the two countries.

In September 2021， Uzbekistan launched the production of a vaccine called ZF-UZ-VAC 2001， developed jointly by the Ministry of Innovation of Uzbekistan and Chinese company Zhifei Longcom. Earlier， in February 2021， the vaccine was presented to the national parliament of Uzbekistan. According to experts， the safety of this drug is more than 99 percent， and its immunogenicity is 97 percent.

Poverty reduction has become a new area of practical cooperation between the two countries. China’s successful experience in eliminating absolute poverty cannot but invite sincere admiration.

Poverty reduction and welfare growth are one of the most important directions of the new national development strategy of Uzbekistan for 2022-26. Uzbekistan sees close practical cooperation with China as relevant in areas such as： a） development of rural industries； b） modernization of the agricultural sector； c） strengthening of rural infrastructure.

Before the outbreak of the pandemic， in 2019， the number of Chinese tourists visiting Uzbekistan was three times that of 2017. These indicators confirm that Uzbekistan is becoming a popular tourist destination for Chinese travelers.

However， it should be emphasized that the recent achievements have not occurred by themselves， but are the result of the relevant measures taken in Uzbekistan in recent years， as well as active cooperation with China. China has long been at the forefront of the world’s outbound tourism. Before the pandemic， more than 150 million tourists left China every year. In this regard， it is no secret that Uzbekistan today， actively forming a new tourist brand， pays special attention to attracting Chinese travelers.

In particular， active measures have been taken to create special conditions for tourists from China， which provide for easier and shorter processing times for issuing visas to groups of Chinese tourists. In 2018， Uzbekistan introduced a simplified procedure for issuing tourist visas to Chinese citizens. From January 1， 2020， a visafree regime for Chinese citizens to enter Uzbekistan for a period of seven days was established， and from March 1， 2021， this period of permitted stay for Chinese tourists was extended to 10 days.

Last year， China celebrated the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. It has completed building a moderately prosperous society in all respects， eradicated absolute poverty and is striving to become a great modern socialist country by the 100th anniversary of the PRC in 2049.

2021 was also a special year for Uzbekistan. The country widely celebrated its 30th anniversary of state independence. In addition， the presidential elections were successfully held in Uzbekistan， in which President Mirziyoyev established a convincing victory. This was clear evidence of broad support for the policy aimed at building a New Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan has announced the successful implementation of the strategy for actions on the development in 2017-21. As a result of the reforms carried out in recent years on the basis of the implementation of the Action Strategy on Five Priority Areas of Development of Uzbekistan in 2017-21， significant progress is being made in the modernization of the political， legal， socioeconomic， spiritual and educational spheres， and the implementation of the idea “from national revival to national progress.”

This has become one of the most important factors that have allowed for the full realization of the existing opportunities for bilateral cooperation between Uzbekistan and China to unfold. In particular， in recent years， comprehensive work has been carried out in Uzbekistan to harmonize the national regulatory framework with international standards. The mechanisms of customs tariffs， fiscal regulations and export-import procedures are being improved and simplified， and “green corridors” are being formed. Favorable conditions are being created for foreign investors. One striking result of which is the fact that over the past four years， the number of Chinese companies in Uzbekistan has increased from about 700 to over 1，900.

Uzbekistan will continue to improve and implement national development programs. This was made clear by President Mirziyoyev in his inaugural speech. In a keynote speech， the head of state outlined his vision of the future development of Uzbekistan.

The Development Strategy of the New Uzbekistan consists of seven directions：

First， large-scale reforms aimed at building a state that cares about dignity， ensuring the legitimate interests and wellbeing of each of its citizens， regardless of ethnicity， language and religion， will be raised to a new level on the basis of the further development of a free civil society.

The focus will be on the creation of new jobs and poverty reduction， spiritual and educational work， as well as the formation of a healthy atmosphere in families and mahallas. Another important task is to create a compact and effective management system focused on the needs of citizens by transforming central departments.

Second， the fundamental and necessary condition for building a people’s state， respect for human honor and dignity is to ensure justice and the rule of law.

Appropriate measures will be taken to improve activities of administrative courts based on international standards. With this in mind， a system will be created in which the court insists on the protection of private property and obliges executive bodies to act within the law， which contributes to the development of society， primarily its economic progress.

Special attention will be paid to the comprehensive support of the rights of entre- preneurs and owners， who play a crucial role in the development of our country and improving the welfare of the population.

Third， the primary task is the development of the national economy， increasing its growth rates. The goal has been set to further increase GDP per capita by mobilizing the resources and opportunities available in the country for this. As a result， by 2030， Uzbekistan should become a country with a per-capita income above the global average level.

It is planned to achieve this goal， first of all， by stimulating the private sector and increasing its share， as well as attracting foreign direct investment. One of the priority tasks in reforming the economy remains to accelerate the processes of transformation and privatization of state-owned enterprises.

Another main direction of reforms is to improve the quality and standard of living of the rural population. To this end， the necessary conditions will be created to increase farmers’ incomes by two times， and the annual growth rate of agriculture will be at least 5 percent.

Fourth， the focus will be， as in previous years， on the implementation of a fair social policy， ensuring quality education and upbringing as the most important factor in the development of human capital.

The development of a national education program， too， is in the works. The main goal is to ensure continuous communication between all parts of the education system. The primary task is to bring the level of coverage of preschool education from 62 percent to at least 80 percent， higher education up to 50 percent， improving the quality and content of the educational process in schools.

The main task of the Development Strategy will be to ensure the health of the population. Our goal is to turn national healthcare into a highly effective system that contributes to the qualitative improvement of public health.

Fifth， extreme importance is attached to reforms in the spiritual and educational spheres. If the economy is an organism that ensures the vital activity of society， then spirituality is its heart and soul. The work in this direction will be based on these two important factors： a strong economy and a strong spirituality， which is based on the rich historical heritage of our people， national and universal values. To this end， the concept of“New Uzbekistan—an enlightened society”will be implemented. Special attention will be paid to the promotion of the humanistic essence of our sacred religion—Islam.

Sixth， the negative impact of environmental threats is increasing in the country. The situation associated with the drying up of the Aral Sea is becoming more acute. In this regard， systematic and comprehensive measures will be carried out to implement the resolution of the UN General Assembly on the declaration of the Aral Sea region as a zone of environmental innovation and technology. Uzbekistan is stepping up efforts to develop a World Environmental Charter aimed at forming a new UN environmental policy.

Seventh， the priority task remains to further increase the power of the Armed Forces of Uzbekistan， which serve as a reliable guarantor of peace and security in the country.

In the past five years， the regional policy of President Mirziyoyev has created a strategic turning point in Central Asia. If earlier the region was considered a powder keg or a tangle of intractable differences， today， it is transforming into a space of stability， goodneighborliness and peace. The issues of water use， the delimitation and demarcation of state borders between Uzbekistan and neighboring countries， the use of transport communications and border crossing have been resolved.

Now， the main task remains to further strengthen the relations of good-neighborliness and strategic partnership， primarily with other countries of Central Asia. Among the priorities of Uzbekistan in the field of foreign policy is the creation of a belt of security， stability and good-neighborliness nationwide.

Uzbekistan will pay special attention to expanding mutually beneficial and multifaceted relations with Russia， China， the United States， Turkey， India， Pakistan， Germany， France， the Republic of Korea， Japan， the United Arab Emirates and partners in all regions of the world.

Uzbekistan will provide all possible assistance to Afghanistan in restoring peace and stability， preventing an economic and humanitarian crisis in this country. The country is interested in implementing major transport and communication projects together with Afghanistan.

In September 2021， the honorable and very responsible mission of the SCO chairmanship was transferred to Uzbekistan.

In recent years， Uzbekistan has noticeably intensified its participation in SCO activities. Therefore， since 2017， Uzbekistan has put forward more than 30 promising initiatives and proposals across a number of important and popular areas of the organization’s activities， such as security， transport communications， trade， economy， innovation， digitalization， advanced and green technologies， poverty reduction， combating the pandemic and environmental threats， cultural and humanitarian dimensions， tourism and others.

The current complex trends in the region and the world at large require us to continue our joint， consistent efforts in further strengthening the potential and authority of our organization.

In this regard， during its presidency in 2022， Uzbekistan proposes to focus general attention on the following priority tasks：

—development of a Joint Action Plan for the development of intraregional trade of the SCO；

—preparation and adoption of the SCO Industrial Cooperation Program；

—adoption of the SCO Strategy for the Development of Transport Connectivity；

—cooperation in the field of poverty reduction and food security；

—intensification of efforts to ensure peace and stability in the SCO region.

Of course， these initiatives will contribute to the further growth of the organization’s potential in solving common urgent tasks. At the same time， the president of Uzbekistan stresses the special importance of using the successful experiences China has demonstrated in this area.

The priorities of the internal development of Uzbekistan are clearly in harmony with the key tasks that are currently on the agenda of Uzbek-Chinese relations and multilateral cooperation within the SCO. Uzbekistan is ready for the most active interaction with all members of the “Shanghai family” in the interests of strengthening security and stability and ensuring sustainable development in the vast expanse of Eurasia.

We also have to mention the new mechanism of regional partnership—the China+Central Asia Foreign Ministers’Meeting， which has become an important platform for discussing topical issues of strengthening mutual trust， and further promoting mutually beneficial cooperation between the countries.