I welcoming remarks

Speech by Akmal Kuchkarov, Ambassador Extraordinary
and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Uzbekistan
to Turkmenistan
The Uzbek-Turkmen relations have traditionally been
friendly and of good-neighborly nature. Our two nations entertain
similar and close stance on pressing issues in the regional and
international agenda, support each other in promoting their
positions and initiatives within international institutions.
Owing to the wisdom and political will of Shavkat
Mironovich Mirziyoyev, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan,
and 
Gurbanguly 
Malikguliyevich 
Berdymuhamedov, 
the
President of Turkmenistan, unprecedented intensification of
cooperation is evident across all areas of Uzbek-Turkmen
relations.
It was already mentioned that Shavkat Mirononovich as
head of state has paid his first foreign visit to Turkmenistan. The
Strategic Partnership Agreement was signed between the two
countries. About fifty mutual visits of delegations of Uzbekistan
and Turkmenistan took place during the first half of the current
year.
Experts astutely observed that the striking feature of
bilateral relations at present is that the leaders of Uzbekistan and
Turkmenistan have for the first time in many years succeeded in
integrating all aspects of the Uzbek-Turkmen multifaceted
collaboration, tapping the existing capacities and ensuring new
quality substance for cooperation.
The positive trend is indicative in almost every sphere of
our partnership.
Take, for example, trade. Today, we have forsaken to
think and act in categories like who is to sell to whom. Today we
are guided by the desire to jointly increase our capacities, not to
compete with each other, but to work together to enter more

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extensive regional and international markets.
The 
signing 
of 
an 
agreement 
between
Uzagrosanoatmashholding JSC and the Ministry of Agriculture
and Water Resources of Turkmenistan on the opening of a joint
trade and service center confirms it.
The purpose sought from launching the center is not only
the sale and maintenance of agricultural machinery supplied to
the Turkmen market, but also the establishment of joint
production of individual parts and components, and full-scale
agricultural machinery production in Turkmenistan in the future.
What does it give us? It gives us an opportunity to form a
large joint market of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. For example,
Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan together produce 15-20% of cotton
grown in the world (Uzbekistan 3 million, Turkmenistan more
than one million tons). We both need agricultural machinery and
cotton harvesters. We provide our manufacturers with a primary
market through a joint production of agricultural machinery and
cotton harvesters. As the market becomes fuller and our
manufacturers’ experience higher, they will be able to compete
with the leading manufacturers of agricultural machinery in world
markets.
The same applies for the hydrocarbon sector. Currently,
there is an agreement between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan on
the joint development of hydrocarbon deposits on the Caspian
shelf. It is a new field of activity for our two countries. The joint
experience garnered in the field will allow our oil producers to
enter the broader regional and international markets in the future.
The signing of an interregional cooperation agreement
between the Bukhara and Khorezm regions of Uzbekistan, on the
hand, and the Lebap and Dashoguz provinces of Turkmenistan,
on the other, is another unique area of interaction for Uzbekistan
and Turkmenistan.
Today, due to the mutual visits of provincial delegations,
our regions work on the implementation of joint projects in

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various fields. In particular, Uzbek farmers with their Turkmen
counterparts have already worked on improving the methodology
and practice of fine-fiber cotton production in Uzbekistan,
sharing their experience and knowledge in intensive gardening,
processing and exporting fruits and vegetables to foreign
countries.
There are a lot of such examples in the Uzbek-Turkmen