The First Minister of Uzbekistan, Abdullah Aripov, and the First Minister of Kazakhstan, Olzhas Bektenov, held the twenty-third meeting of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Bilateral Cooperation in Aktau. At this meeting, they reviewed the progress of previously reached high-level agreements and determined priority areas for further interaction, according to the press service of the Government of Kazakhstan.
According to Bektenov, cooperation between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan continues to actively develop thanks to the political dialogue between the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and the President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev. He noted that this process serves as an example for the entire Central Asian region. The results of the state visit of the President of Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan last November confirmed the high level of trust between the two states.
Aripov emphasized that the meetings of the leaders of the two countries in Bukhara, Astana, and Turkestan set concrete tasks for the governments to deepen cooperation. He expressed readiness to ensure the implementation of these tasks, noting that the negotiations will contribute to the development of trade, investment, industry, transport, interregional connections, as well as cultural and humanitarian relations.
According to data from the Kazakh side, bilateral trade reached a volume of 4.8 billion US dollars in 2025. Furthermore, from January to May 2026, trade turnover increased by 37% compared to the previous year, amounting to 2.3 billion US dollars. Participants focused on implementing the Roadmap for Investment and Trade, which is valued at 7.8 billion US dollars. Projects under this roadmap are designed to diversify trade, expand product supplies, and attract new investments.
Industrial cooperation became another important topic of discussion. Currently, both countries are working on 80 joint projects worth more than 1.8 billion US dollars. Of these, 15 projects worth 227 million US dollars have been completed, creating about 5,000 jobs. Six other projects worth 102 million US dollars are in the implementation stage, and 59 initiatives totaling 1.5 billion US dollars are under consideration.
The First Ministers also analyzed the state of transport routes and logistics corridors. Railway freight transport between the countries increased by 16% in 2025, reaching 32.3 million tons. To increase transport volumes, the parties developed a joint action plan aimed at increasing the capacity of railway corridors from 35 to 60 million tons. Kazakhstan proposed modernizing cross-border railway infrastructure and opening additional border crossing points.
The meeting also highlighted positive trends in the use of Kazakhstan's maritime infrastructure and the development of road transport. Participants reported that the introduction of the E-Permit electronic foreign permit exchange system has allowed the number of permits to increase more than tenfold over the past four years, while reducing border crossing time from nine hours to 30 minutes.
The sides reaffirmed their commitment to continuing cooperation in water resource management, taking into account the interests of both countries. They also stressed the importance of expanding cultural and humanitarian ties, including joint efforts to include historical and cultural sites of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in the transnational UNESCO nomination 'Great Silk Road: Fergana-Syr Darya Corridor.'
Following the expanded format of the meeting, the sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in industry, transport, transit, and other sectors of the economy. Aripov and Bektenov signed the protocol of the twenty-third meeting of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Bilateral Cooperation.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan, Bakhtiyor Saidov, met with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan, Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar. The goal of the meeting was to discuss the further strengthening of the strategic partnership between the two states.
According to Saidov, both sides outlined additional measures that will allow the current momentum in bilateral relations to be transformed into tangible practical results. Special attention was paid to utilizing existing potential to increase mutual trade, improve transport links, and expand interregional interaction.
Furthermore, representatives of the two countries emphasized the importance of further strengthening the joint work of Uzbekistan and Pakistan within international and regional organizations.
The Deputy Minister of Investments, Industry, and Trade of Uzbekistan, Akram Aliyev, met with the Deputy Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany in Uzbekistan, Marion Edel, on July 17, 2026, to discuss deepening bilateral economic partnership.
During the meeting, the parties reviewed the current state and future prospects of interaction in the fields of trade, investment, and technology.
It was noted that bilateral trade turnover increased by 13.2% in 2025, reaching a volume of 1.4 billion US dollars. The volume of German investments implemented in Uzbekistan amounted to 6.4 billion US dollars.
Participants also discussed preparations for the next round of intergovernmental negotiations between Uzbekistan and Germany on cooperation for development. At the end of the meeting, both sides confirmed their readiness to continue practical work aimed at further strengthening bilateral cooperation in agreed areas.
Representatives from Uzbekistan and the Altai Republic of the Russian Federation held negotiations focused on potentially deepening interaction in areas such as agriculture, livestock farming, trade, and tourism.
The meeting took place in Gorno-Altaysk and was attended by Aslam Akбаров, the General Consul of Uzbekistan in Novosibirsk, and Irina Petrovskaya, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Altai Republic. The discussions also included Andrey Tsygulev, Minister of Agriculture of the Altai Republic, and Konstantin Borovoy, Acting Minister of Economic Development.
According to Petrovskaya, the regions of Uzbekistan rank fourth among the main foreign economic partners of the Altai Republic. Bilateral trade turnover significantly increased in 2025, growing fivefold to reach $8.5 million USD.
The Russian side expressed readiness to increase supplies to Uzbekistan of biopharmaceutical products made from horn raw materials, herbal products, honey, and other beekeeping products, as well as wool, down, cheese, confectionery, and meat products. Participants also noted the growing demand for Uzbek agricultural products in the Altai market.
Akбаров emphasized Uzbekistan's interest in increasing imports of livestock from the Altai Republic, including breeding stock, as well as horses and goats. He reported that nearly 30 thousand head of livestock were supplied to Uzbekistan last year.
Agriculture Minister Andrey Tsygulev noted that cooperation between regional companies continues to expand. Specifically, the export volume of Gorno-Altai breed goats to Uzbekistan reached 2,300 head in 2025, compared to 930 head the previous year.
The Uzbek delegation proposed establishing direct contacts between farmers from both countries to reduce intermediaries and lower the cost of livestock products. Tourism was also discussed, as residents of the Altai Republic show increased interest in Uzbek tourism offerings. It is expected that the opening of an international terminal at Gorno-Altaysk airport will help increase mutual tourist flow.
At the conclusion of the negotiations, the Russian side supported the idea of holding a video conference in the near future involving the Department of Tourism Development of the Altai Republic, the Tourism Committee of Uzbekistan, and tour operators from both countries.
