On January 30, 2024, a round table "Cooperation between Uzbekistan and Belarus – new horizons and prospects" organized by the Belarusian Institute of Strategic Research together with the Institute of Strategic and Interregional Studies under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan was held in a videoconference format.
The event took place as part of the BISR expert dialogue with foreign think tanks and demonstrated the keen interest of the parties in the prospects for the development of cooperation between our states. The participants discussed strategic directions for the Belarusian-Uzbek relations development.
The videoconference confirmed the high interest of the Uzbek expert community in finding ways to enhance bilateral cooperation, as evidenced by the wide representation of speakers.
The general tone of the expert round table was set by BISR Director Oleg Makarov and the First Deputy Director of ISMI Akramjon Nematov, as well as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Republic of Uzbekistan Leonid Marinich and Charge d'affaires of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the Republic of Belarus Rakhmatulla Nazarov.
From the Uzbek side, the event was attended by the leadership and representatives of ISMI, the Institute for Macroeconomic and Regional Studies, the Information-Analytical Centre for International Relations, the Center for Economic Research and Reforms, the Center for the Study of Problems of Transport and Logistics Development, Uzbekiston Temir Yullari JSC (Uzbek Railways), the Committee on Tourism, the Information and Analytical Center for International Relations under the MFA of Uzbekistan, the Tourism Committee under the Ministry of Ecology and Environmental Protection and Climate Change.
The Belarusian side was represented by the management and analysts of BISR, as well as the National Centre for Marketing and Price Study, the Belarusian State University of Transport, Vitebsk State University named after P.M. Masherov.
Oleg Makarov, BISR Director: "30 years of relations as independent states have shown that we are reliable partners to each other. The level of Belarusian-Uzbek relations and the relations of our leaders allows us to do more. We have already found areas of cooperation that are successfully developing. These are education, industrial cooperation, agriculture, tourism and recreation. And the main question today is to figure out what prevents our seamless interaction and how we can reach a new level of understanding of the ways that will move us forward."
Akramjon Nematov, ISMI Deputy Director: "The economies of Uzbekistan and Belarus have a complementary structure, the expansion of trade and economic cooperation will remain a key area of our interaction. Our common investment opportunities in projects in agriculture, textile and food industries, pharmaceuticals, animal husbandry, fruit and vegetable processing are particularly in demand."
Rakhmatulla Nazarov, Charge d'affaires of Uzbekistan in Belarus: "Mutual visits of the Heads of the two states and their regular communication on the platforms of international organizations have opened a new page in the history of our bilateral relations and filled them with concrete practical content."
Leonid Marinich, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Uzbekistan: "The development of relations between regions of Belarus and Uzbekistan is an important component of building up bilateral cooperation between our countries not only in economic, but in the cultural and spiritual development of our states as well."
Obid Khakimov, Director of the Center for Economic Research and Reforms under the Administration of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan: "By expanding cooperation ties between manufacturers of the two countries, Uzbekistan and Belarus can help each other to enter domestic and joint products on the markets of third countries, in particular on the markets of Europe, South Asia and the Middle East, which, undoubtedly, will serve the interests of the development of our economies."
Tursun Akhmedov, Deputy Director of the Institute of Macroeconomic and Regional Studies: "Despite the rather high growth rates of trade turnover, the existing opportunities and reserves to expand the export potential of the two countries remain unrealized. In the near future, there is a real basis for improving mutual trade to USD 1.0 billion."
Evgeny Rusak, Deputy Director of the National Center for Marketing and Price Study of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus: "The export potential of Belarusian products in the Uzbek market is USD 368.0 million. The potential has not been realized by 58.2%. Both Belarus and Uzbekistan have low market competition in terms of the presence of multinational corporations, which are difficult to compete with. In other words, there is still a possibility to gain a foothold in niches that are firmly occupied by the world's largest players in other countries."
Irina Rusak, analyst at the BISR Regional Policy Department: "The emphasis of the governments of the two states on the level and quality of life of the population, including in the territorial context, is one of the priorities of the Belarusian and Uzbek models of socially oriented market economy." Jamshed Urakov, Deputy Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Uzbekistan: "2023 was a breakthrough year in terms of expanding trade, economic and investment cooperation. The volume of trade turnover increased by 19% compared to the previous year and made USD 530 million.”
Yevgeny Fedorov, Head of the Department of Operational Work Management and Labor Protection at Belarusian Sate University of Transport: "Both countries are geographically and economically in unique conditions that enable them to act as key transit countries in their regions. Both countries are so-called "Dry Ports" on the routes connecting East with West and North with South. The development of bilateral cooperation should be the key to strengthening the transport and logistics interconnectedness of our countries, the formation of a new global network of goods circulation, the crossroads of which are our countries, and can multiply freight and passenger traffic. At the same time, the transport and logistics complex has sufficient capabilities to ensure trade turnover at a predictable level."
Anton Dudarenok, BISR Foreign Policy Department analyst: "A new route system is being formed in the Greater Eurasia region, which aims at facilitating trade and transport communications within the region and increase logistics efficiency. The Eurasian space is becoming a kind of Suez Canal in the field of world trade, where international transport corridors are considered as the framework elements of regional security."
Nigina Magdieva, Head of the Department of the Information and Analytical Center for International Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan: "The high dynamics of visits exchange by cultural and artistic figures shows the mutual interest of Uzbekistan and Belarus in strengthening cultural and humanitarian cooperation – an important component of enhancing friendship, good-neighborly and partnership relations, based on mutual desire to retain and widely popularize the rich spiritual and historical and cultural heritage of the two peoples."
Yulia Salakhova, Head of the Department of International Relations at the P.M. Masherov Vitebsk State University, analyst at the BISR Regional Policy Department: "The development of international cooperation between educational systems of Belarus and Uzbekistan is based on a high interest not only in their own state development, but also in the desire to adopt the best world practices.”
Dmitry Golubnichy, analyst at BISR Foreign Policy Department: "Industrial and patriotic tourism can become a point of growth for the regions and, in general, have a positive impact on the socio-economic indicators of the Belarusian economic model in the new conditions."
