In an editorial of the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev is called “a leader of reformations in Central Asia”. In other German editions, he is described as “a leader-reformer who seeks change and transparency”. 
 
On the eve of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s visit to Germany, Tashkent signed a contract with the German PR agency for “improving the country’s image”. 
 
Berlin based GPRC German PR and Consulting Group GmbH sent German journalists to Uzbekistan before Mirziyoyev’s visit to Germany. The hired journalists met with high-ranking Uzbek officials. 
 
During the visit of the President of Uzbekistan, the articles of these journalists were published in the German press. 
 
In these articles, “critical analysis is much more than admiration,” a German analyst Ekkehard Meuse says. 

According to the head and founder of the German PR agency GPRC German PR and Consulting Group Konstantin Panovko, “the goal is not to praise Uzbekistan, but to present it to Germany as it is.” 
 
Mr. Panovko also added that his company “did not exert any influence on the content and focus of the articles.”