Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Uzbekistan and the World Trade Organization (WTO) have discussed further steps towards completing the country’s accession negotiations, with particular attention to preparations for the 14th meeting of the Working Party on Uzbekistan’s accession.
The meeting was held by Azizbek Urunov, the President’s Representative for WTO Affairs and Chairman of the Committee for Food Safety, with Working Party Chair Sung-Yeop Choi and M. Osikawa, Director of the WTO Secretariat’s Accessions Division.
The discussions covered Uzbekistan’s progress towards WTO membership, ongoing reforms and the next stages of multilateral and bilateral consultations.
Participants discussed the need to conclude the remaining bilateral negotiations with WTO member states and agree on mutually acceptable market access terms. Other priorities included finalising the texts of Uzbekistan’s commitments, preparing the relevant sections of the Working Party report and completing the final documents.
The sides also reviewed outstanding issues in the multilateral negotiations and the procedures required to complete the accession process within the established timeframe.
The previous, 13th meeting of the Working Party on Uzbekistan’s accession to the WTO was held in July 2026. Significant progress had also been made in bilateral negotiations with member states on market access terms.
The participants stressed the importance of thorough preparations for the next meeting and resolving outstanding issues through constructive dialogue.
One area of work involves aligning national legislation with international trade rules, particularly in sanitary and phytosanitary measures, food safety, veterinary regulation and plant quarantine.
Improving the operations of the Committee for Food Safety, introducing international standards and strengthening the country’s export potential are also regarded as important components of the WTO accession process.
Joining the organisation remains a priority of Uzbekistan’s foreign economic policy. The process involves reforming trade procedures, bringing legislation into line with international trade rules and expanding opportunities for domestic producers to access foreign markets.
