Putin thanks Uzbekistan for neutrality on Ukraine

Russia is grateful to the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev for the neutral and balanced nature of the country’s policy regarding the Ukrainian crisis, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with the heads of world news agencies.

Putin said that during his 3-day state visit to Uzbekistan, he discussed the Ukrainian issue with Mirziyoyev.

“The visit to Uzbekistan was very thorough, fruitful and productive. We discussed the problem of Ukraine, and President Mirziyoyev, of course, actively advocates a peaceful resolution of the Ukrainian crisis, and has repeatedly spoken about Uzbekistan’s concerns in connection with what is happening in Ukraine. But we are grateful to the president that Uzbekistan’s policy here is clearly neutral and very balanced,” he said.

The conversation was attended by representatives of news agencies from Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, the USA, Uzbekistan, China, Iran, Great Britain, Turkey, Korea, Italy, Germany, Japan, Spain and France.