BEIJING, August 2. /Dunyo IA/. Zhao Zhen, Associate Research Fellow at the Department for European-Central Asian Studies, China Institute of International Studies (CIIS) under Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the PRC, commented for Dunyo Information Agency on the participation of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev in the informal Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia and Azerbaijan:

-  We are well aware that the President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, is the initiator of establishing this format.

Uzbekistan is a pivotal state in Central Asia and, together with its closest neighbours, actively promotes the process of regional integration, which is today referred to as the “New Central Asia”.

Thanks to the strong political will and proactive efforts of the Leader of Uzbekistan, long-standing issues in the region have become a thing of the past, and Central Asia has transformed into a space of vast opportunities for the joint development of the countries in the region.

We in China see significant progress in the transition of the region’s countries toward openness and long-term cooperation, in which Uzbekistan plays a pivotal, guiding, and leading role.

Furthermore, cooperation within the region under the “Central Asia Plus” frameworks is progressing successfully.

The second informal meeting of the leaders of Central Asia and Azerbaijan is part of a consistent course toward deepening integration both within Central Asia and with key neighbours from the Caucasus.