Uzbekistan has appointed a senior official from its Ministry for Foreign Economic Relations, Investment and Trade as the new charge d’affaires of its diplomatic mission in Indonesia.

Kahroman Shakirov, who arrived in Jakarta on Thursday, will assume his new job soon.

"Actually my job at the embassy is to look after the economic matters. Since I am the counselor, my government appointed me as the charge d’ affaires," Shakirov, who joined the government service in 1992, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

The previous charge d’affaires, Khamid Djabbarov, returned to Tashkent after five years in Jakarta.

This is not Shakirov’s first foreign assignment. Two years ago he worked at the Uzbekistan Embassy in Tokyo.

Shakirov said Uzbekistan, a landlocked country in Central Asia, is rich in agricultural and natural resources, including natural gas, gold, coal, petroleum, silver and copper.

Currently, Uzbekistan is the fourth largest cotton producer and the second-biggest exporter of cotton in the world.

"Indonesian businesses can invest in Uzbekistan in areas like textiles, energy, tourism, automobiles and telecommunications. Indonesia imports a lot of cotton from Uzbekistan," Shakirov said.

Surprisingly, Indonesia is the world’s second biggest importer of cotton after Bangladesh.

Based on the figures from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), bilateral trade between Indonesia and Uzbekistan reached US$10.53 million in 2006, slightly lower than US$11.62 million in 2005.

"The present trade figures don’t reflect our countries’ economic potential. That’s why I have to work hard to boost economic relations with Indonesia," Shakirov said.

Several Indonesian companies like Bakrie Group and PT Hilman Abror have established a presence in Uzbekistan.

"I hope more Indonesian companies will follow suit," Shakirov said.

Indonesia and Uzbekistan established diplomatic relations on 23 June, 1992, a year after Uzbekistan became independent from the former Soviet Union in 1991.

In an effort to enhance relations with Indonesia, Uzbekistan recently decided to upgrade its embassy in Jakarta.

"Our government will soon appoint a new ambassador. The decision has been taken," Shakirov said.