The strategic military partnership program between Uzbekistan and Russia for 2021-2025 was signed on Wednesday in Bukhara by the defense ministers of the two countries, Bakhodir Kurbanov and Sergei Shoigu, RIA Novosti reported.
The program was signed as part of the official visit of the Russian Defense Minister to Uzbekistan, which began on Tuesday, April 27. The program of the visit includes discussion of international and regional security problems, as well as issues of military and military-technical cooperation between Uzbekistan and the Russian Federation.
Sergei Shoigu noted that such a program was developed for the first time and is designed to maintain the achieved pace of cooperation, to develop bilateral cooperation in the military sphere. At the same time, the Russian Defense Minister emphasized that a high level of relations in this area has been achieved and is being strengthened primarily due to the relations between the presidents of Uzbekistan and Russia.
“We are interested in further deepening bilateral and multilateral ties. Along with this, I would like to emphasize that Uzbekistan is also interested in further expanding all-round cooperation with the Russian Federation in the field of defense and regional security,” RIA Novosti quotes the Defense Minister Bakhodir Kurbanov.
According to the Russian defense minister, the priorities of bilateral military cooperation are the holding of bilateral measures to ensure military security, strengthening the combat potential of the Armed Forces of Uzbekistan, as well as training military personnel.
Uzbekistan is Russia's strategic partner in the Central Asian region. Today it is important to jointly confront challenges and threats, especially the international terrorism, said the Russian Defense Minister.
The Russian Defense Minister arrived in Uzbekistan after a visit to Tajikistan. There, the parties agreed to create a Joint Regional Air Defense System of Russia and Tajikistan to increase the reliability of protecting the state border in the airspace.
