Members of the Uzbek Cabinet of Ministers and the members of the caretaker government of Afghanistan held talks in Termez on October 16, the Uzbek Foreign Ministry said.
The Uzbek delegation was led by Deputy Prime Minister/Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade Sardor Umurzakov, while Afghanistan was represented by the Acting Deputy Head of the Caretaker Government of Afghanistan Abdul Salam Hanafi.
As Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid clarified, the Afghan delegation included officials of the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education and a number of other departments, as well as a group of businessmen.
According to him, the parties discussed the ways to expand the two-way trade, especially in the coming winter, as well as an increase in the volume of fuel supplied to Afghanistan and essential goods, transit capacities for Afghan businesses, cooperation in the health sector, the construction of the Surkhan-Puli-Khumri power line and construction of the Termez-Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar railway.
Following the talks, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan "created working groups in several areas." Within 10 days, the parties will prepare a "road map" for advancing the bilateral ties and present it to the leaders of the two countries, Zabihullah Mujahid underscored.
