Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — On the sidelines of the Samarkand Climate Forum, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with Ibrahim Thiaw, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification.

During the meeting, Ibrahim Thiaw conveyed warm greetings and best wishes from UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

The sides discussed key issues related to the further development of cooperation with the UN in the field of combating desertification and land degradation in Uzbekistan and the region. The UN representative highly praised the speech of the President of Uzbekistan at the forum, emphasizing the relevance of the proposed initiatives to address climate challenges and the timely presentation of the concept of "green" development for Central Asia.

It was noted with satisfaction that in August of last year, the UN General Assembly unanimously approved the resolution on forest restoration, initiated by Uzbekistan, as well as the start of the development of national goals for preventing land degradation.

Additionally, the sides agreed to involve experts from the Convention in establishing an International Scientific Network to combat land degradation and desertification based at the "Green" University in Tashkent.