The agreement on the establishment of the Supreme Interstate Council between Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan was signed in Baku on August 22 by Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Ilham Aliyev.

During the first state visit of Shavkat Mirziyoyev after his re-election as President, another 15 documents were signed at the level of states, governments and departments of the two countries.

Among them are the Roadmap for deepening a comprehensive strategic partnership for 2023-2024, agreements on deepening cooperation in the energy sector, cooperation in the fields of youth policy and sports.

Addenda and amendments were made to the Agreement on visa-free travel of citizens, agreements were reached on cooperation in the field of introducing an information system for the electronic exchange of permit forms "E-permit", in the field of culture, in the field of protecting families and children, in the field of food security, and memorandums were signed on cooperation between the secretariats of the Security Council, in the field of cybersecurity and others.

“It is symbolic that I am making my first visit after the elections to Azerbaijan. This testifies to the highest level of bilateral cooperation, mutual desire for rapprochement, the existence of wide opportunities for interaction,” the President of Uzbekistan said after the talks.

He stressed that the agreement signed by the countries opens a new stage in bilateral relations.

“He expressed Uzbekistan's continued support for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. In this regard, the leader of our country emphasized the special importance of establishing peace and stability in Karabakh, and also praised the scope and pace of the restoration work being carried out here,” his press service quotes the head of state.

“There are no problematic issues between Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan. We emphasized the relevance of the search for new opportunities and mechanisms for the effective use of great potential in the interests of the fraternal peoples,” said Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

At the talks between the presidents and delegations of the two countries, key directions for the development of a multifaceted partnership were identified, the report says.

They discussed the expansion of trade, the development of industrial cooperation and logistics infrastructure. Major projects in the automotive industry, metallurgy, energy, agriculture, electrical engineering, textile industry, tourism and other industries were considered.

To support such projects, a joint Investment Fund and the Uzbek-Azerbaijani Investment Company have been established.

It was said that there are opportunities to increase the trade turnover to $1 billion in the coming years by replacing imports from third countries with products of national manufacturers.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Ilham Aliyev highly appreciated the results of the business forum held the day before with the participation of companies from Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan.

The presidents called the development of cooperation in the field of transport and transit as strategically important. An agreement was reached on the implementation of projects for the development of new logistics chains and the construction of infrastructure, as well as an increase in the volume of cargo transportation.

Last year, the volume of transportation of Uzbek cargo through the port of Baku almost doubled. Uzbekistan intends to increase cargo transportation using the modern transport network of Azerbaijan. In this context, the creation of a joint logistics company within the framework of the Trans-Caspian Corridor, as well as the construction of warehouse infrastructure and logistics centers in the ports of Baku and third countries was discussed.

As another driver of trade and economic cooperation, the possibilities of the provinces of the two countries will be used to the maximum. Governor, mayors and heads of administrations will meet regularly on the ground to promote new projects of cooperation and humanitarian exchange.

During the talks, the parties focused on the cultural ties. Regular days of culture and cinema, meetings of creative and scientific intelligentsia are planned. This year, the first Uzbek-Azerbaijani youth forum will be organized in Uzbekistan. Recently, the Days of Uzbek Culture were held in Azerbaijan, the presentation of Abdulla Kadyri's novel "Past Days", translated into Azerbaijani, was held.

The two leaders agreed to continue a fruitful dialogue at the platforms of international organizations such as the UN, the Organization of Turkic States, the CIS, the OSCE, the Non-Aligned Movement and other multilateral institutions.