A Turkish delegation consisting of Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, and the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) director were in Tashkent on Thursday for a meeting with Uzbek officials. During a meeting with his counterpart Bakhtiyor Saidov, Minister Fidan emphasized the importance of strengthening and institutionalizing strategic cooperation between their countries.
Fidan highlighted the significance of bolstering ties, not only for both countries but also for the wider Turkic world. "There is a great will from our leaders to institutionalize the cooperation and take it further," Fidan said, calling for enhanced collaboration to address modern challenges.
The talks followed the third meeting of the Türkiye-Uzbekistan High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, held in Ankara in June, which Fidan described as a "historic turning point." He said the meeting resulted in important decisions aimed at advancing bilateral relations.
Foreign Ministry sources said that Turkish and Uzbek delegations discussed regional issues, as well as the joint fight against terrorism and extremism, irregular migration and smuggling. As a result of the talks, a road map for the institutionalization and systematic continuation of concrete cooperation between the two countries was agreed upon and signed by the participants.
"The road map includes concrete steps to be taken in the areas of political cooperation and parliamentary diplomacy; trade, economy and investment; defense, security and internal affairs; and cultural and humanitarian fields. We will continue to work to further deepen our comprehensive strategic partnership with Uzbekistan," sources said.
The meeting follows Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s visit to Ankara in June. The sides inked a joint declaration to deepen strategic cooperation and 18 other agreements in various sectors, from energy to human resources, agriculture to trade.
Turkish investments in Uzbekistan are valued at over $1.5 billion (TL 51 billion). They are driven by more than 2,000 firms operating across Uzbekistan, making Türkiye one of the top three countries with the most companies in the Central Asian nation.
Türkiye and Uzbekistan reported $3.12 billion in bilateral trade volume for 2023 and aimed to raise it to $5 billion in the coming years.
The cultural kinship between the two countries, which are part of the OTS, was the major driving force of relations.
Türkiye was the first country to recognize Uzbekistan’s independence in 1991, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. As part of then-President Turgut Özal’s plan to deepen relations with Turkic-speaking Central Asian countries, Ankara sought to reach out to Tashkent under the Islam Karimov administration.
Yet, ties deteriorated over political differences in the following decades. President Erdoğan’s 2016 visit to Uzbekistan, a key country in the region with its location, history, rich cultural values and economic potential, changed the course of relations.
Mirziyoyev’s visit to Türkiye in 2017, as the first sitting Uzbek president to make such a visit in 21 years, further reanimated the relations.