China and Uzbekistan Pledge Mutual Support, Agree to Cooperate on ‘Green’ Minerals

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The Foreign Ministers of China and Uzbekistan agreed to expand strategic cooperation, including a new initiative to jointly develop "green" mineral resources across the entire supply chain, following two days of high-level talks in Tashkent last week.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Uzbek counterpart, Bakhtiyor Saidov, met on November 20-21 for the second round of their strategic dialogue, where they reaffirmed their "all-weather strategic partnership," according to a joint statement released by the Uzbek side.

Diplomats focused heavily on the economic bloc, noting positive momentum in trade and investment, as well as progress on projects related to industry, energy, transport, and agriculture. The agreement on cooperation in mining "green" minerals—materials essential for renewable energy technologies—represented a fundamentally new item on the agenda.

The dialogue also featured an exchange of political guarantees. Beijing promised to continue supporting Tashkent’s sovereign choice and the implementation of its social and economic reforms under the "New Uzbekistan" strategy. Uzbekistan, in turn, reaffirmed its firm commitment to the "One China" principle and expressed support for Beijing’s efforts toward "national reunification," explicitly opposing any form of "Taiwan independence."

The Ministers also discussed regional security matters. The Chinese side praised the outcomes of the Seventh Consultative Meeting of Central Asian Heads of State, which took place in Tashkent earlier in November. Uzbek diplomats acknowledged the importance of the recent Fourth Plenary Session of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee for global development.

Both nations agreed to coordinate their actions within international forums, including the United Nations (UN), the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the BRICS group, and the "China – Central Asia" format. They also pledged to continue their joint work within the framework of Beijing’s "Belt and Road Initiative." Participants concluded that the strategic dialogue mechanism has become an effective platform for strengthening mutual trust between the two countries.