Mirziyoyev, EU delegation review EPCA rollout and broader cooperation

The discussions focused on expanding trade, economic and investment cooperation, particularly in the context of commitments reached during Mirziyoyev’s high-level visit to Brussels in October.

The president congratulated the EU officials on the successful organization of the third Central Asia–EU Economic Forum and the Trans-Caspian Corridor Investor Forum in Tashkent. He noted that both events resulted in the launch of several new joint regional-scale projects.

Uzbekistan and the EU continue to see dynamic growth in their partnership, with a new, comprehensive cooperation agenda taking shape across bilateral and multilateral platforms. This year, the sides signed the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (EPCA), held summits in Samarkand and Brussels, and concluded negotiations on Uzbekistan’s accession to the World Trade Organization.

Trade turnover between Uzbekistan and the EU has increased by nearly 7 percent since the start of the year. Mirziyoyev emphasized that the effective implementation of the EPCA is expected to significantly boost trade volumes and attract additional investment.

The meeting also underscored the importance of further improving institutional cooperation mechanisms to expand and diversify the range of traded goods, and to develop new joint investment projects in industrial cooperation, transport, digitalization, critical minerals, energy, healthcare and other priority sectors.