President Zardari welcomes Uzbek president’s invitation to visit, emphasises strengthening ties
President Asif Ali Zardari welcomed Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s invitation to visit the country and emphasised strengthening ties between Islamabad and Tashkent, the president’s media wing said on Tuesday.
According to a press release by the President’s Secretariat, the president met with Uzbek Ambassador Alisher Tukhtaev, who called on him at Aiwan-e-Sadr and handed over a letter from the Uzbek president, who had visited Pakistan for two days last week.
In his letter, Mirziyoyev thanked President Zardari, the government and the people of Pakistan for the extraordinary hospitality and warm welcome extended to him during his visit. He also expressed gratitude for being conferred the Nishan-e-Pakistan, Pakistan’s highest civil award, as well as the honorary professorship and doctorate, according to the statement.
“President Mirziyoyev reiterated his invitation to President Zardari, earlier conveyed during their tête-à-tête,” it added, referring to the Uzbek president’s invitation to President Zardari to visit Uzbekistan “at a convenient time in order to further develop comprehensive cooperation”.
“President Zardari accepted the invitation and directed the concerned authorities from the Pakistani side to coordinate with their Uzbek counterparts to finalise the visit later this year.”
The president said that Pakistan attached great significance to its close brotherly relations with Uzbekistan, while underscoring the importance of effective follow-up on the outcomes of Mirziyoyev’s recent “historic and result-oriented” state visit to Pakistan, the statement said.
He reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to further strengthening cooperation with Uzbekistan in “key sectors including food and agriculture, mining, information technology, tourism, health and banking”.
The president also welcomed Uzbekistan’s interest in importing halal meat, fruits and potatoes from Pakistan as a positive step towards enhancing bilateral trade, it added.
“President Zardari also conveyed his gratitude to Mirziyoyev for his message of solidarity and support following the recent terrorist attack in Islamabad,” the statement said.
Zardari reaffirmed the shared resolve of Pakistan and Uzbekistan to “continue their joint journey of peace, stability and development”.
During Mirziyoyev’s two-day visit to Pakistan, the two sides signed a protocol for enhancing bilateral trade between the two countries to $2 billion within the next five years.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his delight that the Uzbek president and his delegation visited Islamabad, his “second home”, for the second time in four years. Meanwhile, Mirziyoyev declared that Pakistan was Uzbekistan’s “time-tested, reliable partner and closest friend” in South Asia.
