Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- As part of the official visit of the delegation of the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to Uzbekistan, on April 4, 2023, the Europe-Uzbekistan Association for Economic Cooperation (EUROUZ) organized a networking meeting between CEOs of Uzbekistan’s largest companies and the members of the delegation in an event titled “The evening-tea meeting between Uzbekistan’s business leaders & the Members of the European Parliament”.

The top management & members of the board of some of county’s largest private companies such as Korzinka.uz, TBC Bank Uzbekistan, International Beverages Tashkent (PepsiCo Bottlers in Uzbekistan), Almalyk Mining And Metallurgical Complex, Orient Group and Asakabank, had the opportunity to meet with the group of four members of the European Parliament visiting Uzbekistan including Mr. Thierry Mariani (France), Mr. Ryszard Czarnecki (Poland), Mr. Javier Moreno Sánchez (Spain) and Mr. Karsten Lucke (Germany).

The event started with the introductions of the goals of the EU delegation’s and exchange of the views on how EU officials see Uzbekistan and Central Asia, and how the current state of affairs in the region and in the world is influencing the increased interest of the EU in the countries of Central Asia as well as the prospects for Central Asia and Uzbekistan, in particular, to play a larger role in European supply chains, logistics and external economic partnerships. The Uzbek CEOs have shared their opinions on the progress, the practical impact of Uzbekistan’s transformation in recent years on their businesses and, in some cases, on the development of economic partnerships with Europe.

When addressing the honorary members of EU Parliament, Mr. Oybek Shaykhov – the Secretary-General of EUROUZ said: “One of the main missions of EUROUZ Association is to connect real-life change makers in Uzbekistan to Europe and its markets, to amplify and develop new economic partnerships as a driving force behind further transformation, social progress and economic growth of Uzbekistan”.

During his speech Mr. Zafar Khashimov, the founder and CEO of supermarket chain Korzinka.uz, highlighted the importance of increasing the image of Uzbekistan in the European market & how more products & more are now supplied from Europe, and Mr. Spartak Tetrashvili, the CEO of TBC Bank Uzbekistan, stated that the case of the Georgian TBC Holding is the real example of how Uzbekistan proved itself as a country for successful investing and return.

“We want to thank all present here for showing us the success stories of Uzbekistan, and we want to take this experience to Europe and convey the message that Central Asia is a potential region for economic development and investment”, - concluded his speech Mr. Karsten Lucke, the member of EU parliament (Germany), while MEP Mr. Ryszard Czarnecki (Poland) indicated that Central Asia’s importance as a region for creating new partnerships and dialogue for Europe is continuing to grow.

The event ended with the networking session during which the participants discussed the results expected from EU Delegations’ visit and exchanged their views on Uzbekistan’s economic potential in the future.

The meeting was historic, as for the first time the visiting Members of the European Parliament have had the opportunity to meet Uzbekistan’s top business leaders in an informal setting. EUROUZ will continue to work to create more opportunities for high-level interactions for its European members and Uzbekistan’s businesses to make new connections and interactions that directly benefit the economic partnership between EU and Uzbekistan.