Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov received Vladimir Norov, the Deputy Secretary of the Security Council, the Director of the Institute for Strategic and Interregional Studies at the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on October 15, 2018.

The sides exchanged views on the important international and regional issues, the press service of the Russian Foreign Ministry reported.

It was noted that the issues related to the practical activities of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization were taken into consideration with the fact that Mr. Norov would be the SCO Secretary-General in January 2019.

Vladimir Norov, Director of the Institute for Strategic and Interregional Studies at the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, was confirmed as the SCO Secretary-General in early June this year. He replaces the Tajik representative Rashid Alimov on this post.

Mr. Norov will be SCO Secretary-General in 1 January 2019 - 31 December 2021.

Vladimir Norov, born in Bukhara in 1955, served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from July 12, 2006 to January 12, 2010.

He had served as an Ambassador of Uzbekistan in various countries (1998-2003 in Germany, Ambassador External in Poland and Switzerland, 2005-2006 in Belgium, from August 27, 2013 an Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Uzbekistan to Belgium, from December 2, 2014 in Luxembourg).

He was appointed as the Director of the Strategic and Interregional Research Institute at the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan in May 2017.