Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 14 April 2020, a video conference was held with the participation of Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sardor Umurzakov and Minister for Cabinet and Future Affairs of the United Arab Emirates Mohammad bin Abdullah al-Gergawi.

The focus of attention was on current issues of investment and trade and economic cooperation: dynamics, interim results and forecasts for the near future. Significant progress was noted in cooperation in improving the efficiency of public administration - despite the current restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, communication in 22 working groups formed from the ministries and departments of Uzbekistan and the United Arab Emirates as part of this initiative is actively continuing through video conferencing.

Mohammad bin al-Gergawi assured that the Emirate side remains committed to the agreements reached with Uzbekistan, and that joint work on the implementation of joint projects will continue at a dynamic pace.

The current issues related to the implementation of projects in Uzbekistan by the Emirate partners were specifically considered, in particular, the project to create logistics parks and industrial zones in the Tashkent region, the project of organizing a “dry port” in Navoi, construction and real estate projects, as well as other ongoing initiatives - the parties exchanged a vision on further steps to accelerate their implementation in the indicated areas.

The relevance and decisiveness of the actions of the Government of Uzbekistan to counteract the spread of the pandemic, to protect public health and maintain economic activity in the country was separately emphasized. In this context, the Uzbek side expressed gratitude for the humanitarian assistance provided by the UAE Government in the form of medical masks, overalls, gloves, and other protective equipment designed to combat the spread of COVID-19.

As a result of the video conference, an agreement was reached to continue the practice of holding similar online sessions at various levels for more active interaction and prompt resolution of current issues of bilateral cooperation