On November 28, 2018, the eighth round of Uzbek-Canadian ministerial political consultations was held in Ottawa.
Deputy Foreign Minister of Uzbekistan Dilshod Akhatov and the Director General of the Bureau for Sub-Polar Region, Eastern Europe and Eurasia of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Alison LeClaire held extensive negotiations on topical issues of bilateral and regional agenda.
The parties exchanged views on the implementation of the agreements reached in the previous round of inter-MFA political consultations in Tashkent in October 2017.
The firm commitment of Uzbekistan and Canada to further deepen mutually beneficial relations, as well as the intention to ensure the substantial development of bilateral contacts by enhancing dialogue at various levels, were confirmed.
The sides expressed their readiness to expand trade and economic ties, encourage and increase mutual deliveries of goods and services, create the necessary conditions for investment, and take mutual measures to increase the tourist flow.
During the consideration of the international and regional agenda, special attention was paid to the situation in Afghanistan. It was noted that both countries are interested in peaceful solution of the Afghan problem and are ready to cooperate in this area. The Canadian side reaffirmed its readiness to make a significant contribution to supporting the efforts of Uzbekistan aimed at improving the socio-economic situation in the country.
The delegations agreed to establish cooperation within the framework of the Multi-Partner Human Security Trust Fund for the Aral Sea Region, which began its work under the auspices of the UN on November 27, 2018 in New York.
On the same day, the Uzbek delegation held talks with Ian Shugart, Canada’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. In the course of the conversation, the results of inter-MFA political consultations were summed up, and prospects for the further development of cooperation in priority areas were considered.
As part of their stay in Ottawa, the representatives of the Uzbek MFA also visited the Parliament of Canada and met with members of the Canada-Uzbekistan friendship group headed by member of the House of Commons Ziad Aboultaif.
A separate meeting was held with the Parliamentary Secretary of the Foreign Minister of Canada, Andrew Leslie. During the conversation, the priority directions of the Uzbek-Canadian relations were discussed, a number of measures that should be taken by the legislative bodies of the two countries to bring bilateral relations to a qualitatively new level were identified.
On November 26-27, 2018, meetings were held in Montreal and Ottawa with representatives of the Export Development Corporation of Canada, the Canadian Trade Development Corporation, and heads of a number of leading companies interested in establishing business activities in Uzbekistan.
As part of their stay in Canada, the delegation held talks with representatives of McGill University and the University of Ottawa. During the meetings, issues of cooperation in the field of training highly qualified personnel, organization of student and faculty exchanges, the establishment of double-diploma education, as well as the participation of Canadian specialists in the activities of universities in Uzbekistan were discussed.
