The UN General Assembly, at the initiative of Uzbekistan, unanimously approved a special resolution on strengthening interconnectedness between Central and South Asia

On July 11, the UN General Assembly unanimously approved a special resolution on strengthening the interconnectedness between Central and South Asia, IA Dunyo correspondent reports.

The document was presented by Abdulaziz Kamilov, special representative of the President of Uzbekistan on foreign policy issues, who is visiting New York.

The adoption of the resolution was the practical implementation of the initiative of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, put forward during the high-level international conference “Central and South Asia: regional interconnectedness. Challenges and Opportunities”, held in July 2021 in Tashkent.

As is known, speaking at this important event, the head of our state emphasized the historical proximity of the regions of Central and South Asia and the importance of strengthening on the basis of mutual trust and taking into account interests. In this context, the President of Uzbekistan proposed to develop and submit a draft resolution to the UN General Assembly and consolidate in the document the general approaches, basic principles and directions of the dialogue between the regions of Central and South Asia.

It should be noted that last year the Tashkent conference brought together an unprecedented number of delegates - heads of state and government, foreign ministers, heads of international and regional organizations - about 600 representatives from 50 countries of the world. UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who then sent his video message to the conference participants, stated that “connectivity plays a key role in trade, economic growth and sustainable development” and “can contribute to building long-term peace, stability and prosperity in Central and South Asia.”

It is gratifying that the resolution was not only unanimously supported by all UN member states, but was also adopted with the co-authorship of about 40 countries from different continents of the world, which indicates the high recognition by the international community of the relevance and timeliness of the initiative of the leader of Uzbekistan. Among the countries that joined the number of co-authors of the Uzbek document, one can single out such states as Azerbaijan, Armenia, Angola, Vietnam, Vanuatu, Ghana, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Côte d'Ivoire, Qatar, Egypt, Iran, Nepal, Malaysia, Mongolia, Morocco, Pakistan, Russia, Senegal, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Sri Lanka, Philippines and others.

The resolution adopted by the main deliberative body of the UN highly appreciates the holding of this high-level conference and the Joint Statement of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the two regions approved at the end of it.

The document emphasizes the importance of strengthening cooperation for the implementation of the Vienna Declaration and its program of action for landlocked developing countries for 2014-2024, as well as the key importance of transport and transit corridors for accelerating economic growth, improving the efficiency of trade and economic ties between countries of Central and South Asia and the realization of their unique transport, transit and investment potential.

In addition, the resolution recognizes the important role of regional organizations in strengthening regional ties and, in this context, highly appreciates the initiative of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan to proclaim the year 2022. in the framework of the Economic Cooperation Organization "Year of Strengthening Connectivity".

The resolution also takes into account the importance of Afghanistan's role in establishing links between Central and South Asia, as well as its economic development and integration into interregional economic processes to ensure lasting peace and stability.

It should be emphasized that the document reflects the key provisions on establishing close cooperation between the regions of Central and South Asia to reduce poverty, improve food security, expand transport infrastructure and form new international transport corridors that open convenient, sustainable and safe routes to maritime ports.

It is noteworthy that the document focuses on the importance of exchanging experience to promote sustainable development, including by providing access to clean energy technologies, solving environmental problems and protecting the environment.

The participants welcomed the intention of Uzbekistan to hold the International Conference on Afghanistan on July 25-26 in Tashkent. They expressed their conviction that this forum will be another practical step in consolidating international efforts to provide the necessary assistance to Afghanistan and actively involve it in regional processes.

The resolution also calls on all member states to join forces in the fight against common challenges and threats to stability and security in Central and South Asia.

The unanimous adoption of this resolution by the UN General Assembly is a clear indicator of the full support of the international community for the state policy of the leadership of Uzbekistan to strengthen peace and friendship, trust and good neighborliness, expand mutually beneficial cooperation between the two regions, create favorable conditions for the development of trade and economic ties and the growth of mutual investment, consolidation efforts in the fight against common challenges and threats to stability and security.