Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) – On 26 February 2020, a delegation of experts visiting the United Kingdom led by Deputy Director of the Institute for Strategic and Interregional Studies under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sanjar Valiev took part in a round table at Cambridge University.

The event, organized by the Cambridge Forum on Central Asia, the University of Kent and the Embassy of Uzbekistan in London, was attended by faculty, doctoral students and students of Cambridge University, representatives of research centers and scientific foundations of Great Britain, as well as our compatriots studying in British universities.

The delegation of Uzbekistan informed the forum participants about the processes of modernization in the country, the main provisions of the Message of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Oliy Majlis and the priority tasks of the development of the republic.

Further plans for the liberalization of the economy, questions of the country’s economic integration into international and regional associations were thoroughly explained. The presence of a large untapped potential and new opportunities for the development of Uzbek-British cooperation in research and educational fields are particularly emphasized.

Representatives of Cambridge University praised the essence and content of the Address of the head of state to the Parliament, including the announcement of 2020 in Uzbekistan as the “Year of the Development of Science, Education and the Digital Economy.” Underscoring the special importance of human capital in ensuring the long-term socio-economic development of the country, they positively evaluated the republic’s plans to enroll up to 50-60% of school graduates with higher education, providing academic and financial independence to universities, creating a system of regular referral of teachers and researchers to conduct research and advanced training in foreign countries.

Based on the extensive experience of productive cooperation with universities and research institutions of Uzbekistan, the Director of the Cambridge Central Asia Forum, Siddhart Saxena, expressed interest in further expanding and deepening cooperation with Uzbek partners. In particular, he announced the intention of the University of Cambridge to hold a scientific and practical seminar in Uzbekistan in April this year, aimed at strengthening the research potential of Uzbek doctoral students, teaching them the methodology of conducting scientific work, preparing articles and reports on the standards of a reputable British university.

The representative of the British Global Challenge Research Foundation, Niilam Raina, noting that her organization has funds of £ 1.5 billion to support the scientific potential of developing countries, urged Uzbek scientists to more actively apply to this fund to finance their projects. Of great interest to the Fund are studies on Central Asia regarding the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, environmental protection, and others.

At the end of the round table, the parties agreed on further development of cooperation and identified specific areas of cooperation for the near future.

On the same day, the delegation of Uzbekistan met at the Royal Institute of International Relations (Chatham House) with a group of leading analysts at Chatham House, the Royal Institute for Defense Studies, the British Foreign Office and the Prism Risk Assessment Research Center.

A constructive exchange of views took place on the issues of international and regional economic integration of Uzbekistan, as well as ensuring stability and sustainable development of Central Asia.

Following the meeting, agreements were reached on enhancing cooperation between the leading think tanks of the two countries, preparing joint publications and conducting research projects.