By Muhammad Sohail
During his trip, the head of Czech diplomacy visited Kazakhstan on Monday, October 21, and Uzbekistan on Tuesday, October 22. In both key countries of the region, the minister signed memorandums of cooperation.
During the reception by President Kassym Zomart Tokaev, the partners appreciated the long-term development of mutual relations. In addition to mutual cooperation, he also spoke about the successful project of ZOO Prague regarding the return of Převalský’s horses to Kazakhstan. At the beginning of June, the Czech Republic, together with ZOO Prague, transported 7 horses to Kazakhstan, others will follow. The goal is to bring at least 40 horses.
“The importance of the Central Asian region is growing, and Europe must respond to this. A number of projects with Kazakhstan are already running, and we discussed others today with Minister Murat Nurtleu,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Lipavský after the meeting with his counterpart.
At the end of the meeting, the two ministers also signed a memorandum on cooperation between the ministries of foreign affairs, which will create a framework for further consultations, economic cooperation and further development of mutual relations.
Minister Lipavský started the program in Uzbekistan with a lecture at the “University of World Diplomacy and Economy”, where future diplomats are educated. In front of a full hall, he shared with the students his experience in diplomacy, described the significance of his trip to Central Asia and explained to them the Czech perspective on geopolitical events, especially on Russian aggression against Ukraine.
Uzbekistan is another key partner in the Central Asian region, with which the Czech Republic has also concluded a framework of enhanced cooperation. These topics were also discussed by the minister during the reception with the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Jamshid Khojaev and also during the meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Bakhtiyor Saydov. In addition to the mutual level of relations, the cooperation of Central Asia, namely Uzbekistan and the EU, is also important.
“The European Union knows that the Central Asian region has an increasingly important role. At the same time, it is crucial that Uzbekistan and the entire region play a greater role in the Global Gateway initiative, which builds more resilient EU relations with the world. We all understand how absolutely essential this is at this time,” said Minister Lipavský during the meeting with the Uzbek Foreign Minister.
Just as in Kazakhstan’s Astana, so also in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent, the ministers signed a memorandum on mutual cooperation between the ministries of foreign affairs.
