Uzbekistan and Russia are preparing for signing about 20 draft intergovernmental accords. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko told TASS Thursday.

“Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, we had to postpone the state visit of Mr. [President of Uzbekistan Shavkat] Mirziyoyev to the Russian Federation to a later date, but we hope that it will eventually take place at a later date. We have about 20 draft intergovernmental agreements in our portfolio that we are ready to sign,” he said.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev's state visit to Russia was scheduled for June. At the end of June, the head of state visited Moscow to attend the ceremonies marking the 75th anniversary of the Victory in WWII.

The high-ranking diplomat highly commended the upward trends in the dialogue between Tashkent and Moscow. According to him, economic, political and military-technical cooperation are developing at a good pace, including thanks to the efforts of the President of Uzbekistan.

Rudenko drew attention to the fact that the Uzbek side expressed a desire to obtain observer status in the EAEU. “We hope that in the near future this status will be granted to Uzbekistan, which will open up opportunities for deepening integration within the EAEU, including the opportunity to gain experience of cooperation with other countries in the context of this organization and ultimately become a full member of the Union. Again, the sovereign choice should remain with the leadership of Uzbekistan, we will respect what decision they take,” the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister stressed.