Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The most important strategic task of Uzbekistan’s foreign policy is the development of economic relations with its closest neighbors, as well as ensuring economic security around the Central Asian region.

Kazakhstan is the leading trade and economic partner of Uzbekistan in the region. The trend aimed at strengthening and strengthening economic relations, primarily industrial cooperation, fully meets the national interests of the two leading countries of Central Asia.

According to official data from the State Statistics Committee of Uzbekistan, the volume of bilateral trade for 2016-2021 grew almost 2 times, from US$2.1 billion to US$3.9 billion, and in the first 11 months of this year, this figure increased by 20% compared to the same period of the previous year.

At the same time, according to the results of this year, bilateral trade will approach US$5 billion. And over the next five years, the volume of mutual trade is planned to be increased to US$10 billion.

Kazakhstan is the third largest foreign trade partner of Uzbekistan, which accounts for 9.3% of the total trade volume of our country after China (18.7%) and Russia (18.6%).

The largest Uzbek exports to Kazakhstan are vehicles (27.8%), food products (19.1%), services (14.0%), plastics and products from them (5%), textiles (4.5%), ferrous metals (4.2%), etc.

Uzbekistan imports flour-grinding products (27.3%), ferrous metals and products from them (17.8%), energy carriers (10.5%), ore and slag (12.7%), building materials (5. 0%), vehicles (4.6%) and other products from Kazakhstan.

Thanks to the successfully implemented Roadmaps, adopted following the agreements between the heads of the two states, trade and economic cooperation between the countries is gaining momentum. International and intergovernmental platforms have been created to promptly resolve emerging practical issues and intensify bilateral relations.

These are, first of all, interregional business forums and fairs of the two countries. In particular, in 2018, a forum was held in Shymkent, following which agreements were signed on the implementation of 26 investment projects worth US$110.5 million and 69 trade contracts worth US$209.3 million.

In November 2021, on the eve of the state visit of Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Kazakhstan, the third Interregional Forum was held. The result was the signing of 54 investment and commercial contracts in the fields of mechanical engineering, agro-industrial complex, production of building materials, electrical products, medical products, infrastructure development and other industries for a total of US$611.3 million.

At the same time, one can confidently single out the successful and productive Uzbek-Kazakh business forum, which took place on the eve of the state visit of the President of Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan.

It was attended by heads of key ministries, departments, industry associations, chambers of commerce and industry, holding companies and more than 400 representatives of the business community of the two countries.

As a result of the forum, an Agreement was signed on the development of cooperation in trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres between the cities of Samarkand and Turkestan, a separate "Road Map" with specific investment projects and trade contracts in the field of agriculture, as well as a solid package of agreements that consolidated specific plans development of interaction between business circles of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.

Thus, the implementation of more than 30 joint projects worth more than US$3 billion is currently ongoing.

The past business forum once again showed the dynamic and mutually beneficial desire for cooperation between the two fraternal peoples.

As the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted, it is necessary to use the huge potential of interregional cooperation to the maximum. According to him, we have everything to multiply the volume of trade in the coming years due to the mutual replacement of expensive imports from third countries with the products of our manufacturers.

To this end, the Heads of States of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan agreed to form, under the Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Bilateral Cooperation, a working group headed by vice-premiers and create a joint foreign trade company.

These initiatives of the Presidents of the two countries directly aimed at the development of Uzbek-Kazakh economic cooperation once again convincingly prove that the centuries-old ties of the fraternal peoples are getting stronger every year, opening up new horizons for further stable and mutually beneficial cooperation.

Shavkat Alimbekov

Leading Research Fellow at the International Institute of Central Asia