Uzbekistan will compete with Kazakhstan – President of Finland

According to President of Finland Alexander Stubb, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are in competition with each other. He made this remark during his lecture delivered on October 30 at the University of World Economy and Diplomacy in Tashkent.

“States always compete. For example, Finland and Sweden. We compete not only in hockey but also as nations. We always want to rank higher than Sweden in various international indicators. I believe Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan also compete. Yes, I saw the Deputy Prime Minister raise his thumb — that means it’s true. Competition can take many forms. It can be technological competition. Who has the best artificial intelligence? Who has the most advanced robotics? Who has the best data centers? Who excels in quantum computing? Or it can be competition for resources. Who possesses the best natural resources? What about critical minerals? How can we extract them? How can we benefit from them? Competition can also, of course, relate to military matters. How much are your defense expenditures? What are your capabilities? How strong is your ability to deter threats? So, competition always exists,” said President Stubb.

According to the Finnish leader, countries that have long occupied top positions in global rankings tend to become somewhat complacent over time. They think too highly of themselves and suddenly witness the rise of other nations. He noted that while Finland’s economy is expected to grow by 1–2% this year, Uzbekistan’s growth is projected at 6–7%.

“The problem is that if you don’t regulate competition, it can easily turn into conflict. In my opinion, if you lack rules, norms, and institutions to manage competition, you will face conflict. After the Cold War, things went quite well.

I’m not saying there were no conflicts. The former Yugoslavia is a good example. There were many conflicts in Africa and the Middle East — I’m not denying that. But the main point is that we moved from local conflicts, such as civil wars, to regional ones like Israel–Palestine or Russia–Ukraine. We shifted from small-scale conflicts to larger ones like Israel–Iran.

We must try to prevent this from escalating to the worst level — a global conflict in one form or another. I believe that without cooperation, competition will inevitably turn into conflict,” the president concluded.

For reference, President of Finland Alexander Stubb is paying an official visit to Uzbekistan from October 29 to November 1.