Mirziyoyev arrives in Samarkand

The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, has arrived in Samarkand to participate in the first "Central Asia - European Union" summit. This was reported by the President’s press service.  

Today, April 2, the head of state is scheduled to hold an informal meeting with the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, who arrived in Samarkand earlier this morning.  

On April 3, a series of bilateral negotiations will be held with the heads of delegations attending the summit.  

On April 4, multilateral events will take place, featuring the heads of Central Asian countries and key institutions of the European Union.  

For reference, the inaugural summit between the European Union and Central Asia will be held in Samarkand on April 3-4. The meeting, chaired by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, will be attended by the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan. On April 4-5, the first Samarkand Climate Forum will take place at the "Silk Road Samarkand" congress center. The forum is expected to attract leaders from Central Asian countries, including Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan, as well as representatives from the European Union, the UN, international financial institutions, and prominent environmental organizations.  

During the summit, the European Union is expected to reaffirm its commitment to strengthening cooperation in areas of mutual interest. These include transport and digital communications, critical raw materials, economic and security partnerships, and energy transition.  

It should be noted that earlier reports indicated that access roads to Samarkand would be temporarily closed due to the summit. Additionally, it was announced that some higher education institutions in the city would be closed briefly from April 1 to 5 in connection with the summit.