On 1 February 2017, Uzbekistan and the Unites States of America held a meeting in Tashkent to share perspectives on the threat of malicious actors acquiring nuclear or other radioactive materials and to discuss their governments’ cooperation to counter that threat.
The US Embassy in Tashkent said that the discussions were a continuation of ongoing bilateral cooperation under the countries’ March 2012 Counter Nuclear Smuggling Joint Action Plan, which outlines steps for the governments to work together to prevent, detect, and respond to nuclear and other radioactive materials smuggling incidents.
At today’s meeting, representatives of both countries discussed mutual progress implementing the outlined actions and identified specific next steps in their cooperation.
Collaboration between the United States and Uzbekistan helps to deter future smuggling attempts, ensure successful detection and prosecution of would-be smugglers, and strengthen the security of the United States, Uzbekistan, and the global community, the US Embassy said.