During his official visit to Uzbekistan, the UN Secretary-General met with President Mirziyoyev. The UN will support Uzbekistan “in the project of transforming the country into a beacon of peace, prosperity and justice” UN
During an official visit to Uzbekistan, the UN Secretary-General held a meeting with the president of this country. Antonio Guterres and Shavkat Mirziyoyev discussed the prospects for cooperation between the UN and the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as issues related to regional stability and development in Central Asia.
Currently, the UN head is on a tour of the countries of Central Asia – in addition to Uzbekistan, he will visit Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. António Guterres last visited the Central Asian region in 2017.
During a meeting with the President of Uzbekistan, the UN Secretary-General expressed gratitude for his role in developing regional cooperation in Central Asia, and for aligning Uzbekistan’s national development plan with the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda.
Last month, Uzbekistan was elected to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC) and the Governing Body of the International Labor Organization. The representative of Uzbekistan became a member of the UN Human Rights Committee for the first time. Next year the 43rd General Conference of UNESCO will be held in Samarkand.
During the first day of his stay in Tashkent, the UN Secretary General visited the Yangi Uzbekistan park and laid flowers at the Independence Monument. After the negotiations, a ceremony was held in Tashkent to present Antonio Guterres with one of the highest state awards of Uzbekistan – the Order of Dustlik. The Secretary General was awarded “for actively promoting solidarity and unity in the world, increasing the effectiveness of the United Nations, as well as strengthening cooperation between Uzbekistan and the UN.”
“I am deeply grateful for another gesture of wonderful hospitality with which I am received here in Uzbekistan,” said Anonio Guterres. “At this moment I think of all my colleagues who are giving their lives (almost 200 people died in Gaza) to support the most vulnerable of the vulnerable and do everything to minimize human suffering in a world full of conflict and natural disasters, in which a combination geopolitical disagreements, climate change and other challenges make the global security situation extremely fragile.”
Central Asia, in particular Uzbekistan, is one of the centers of civilization, the UN head emphasized : “You only have to go to Samarkand or Bukhara to feel it.”
António Guterres called the President of Uzbekistan “a leader committed to prosperity in conditions of justice,” noting that Uzbekistan has accepted most of the UN recommendations in the area of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, and the United Nations is ready to support their implementation.
“We are also ready to support your government in your ambitious but justifiable project of transforming the country into a beacon of peace, prosperity and justice, to give the citizens of Uzbekistan what what they deserve is a country that everyone can be proud of,” said the UN chief.