ISLAMABAD, October 8. /Dunyo IA/.    Pakistani news agency “Global News Pakistan” has published an article titled “Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan: A New Stage in the Development of Their Strategic Partnership”, reports Dunyo IA correspondent.

According to Vladislav Tyan, Chief Research Fellow at the Institute for Strategic and Regional Studies under the President of Uzbekistan, the eighth Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia and Azerbaijan, which will be held in Awaza, gives particular significance to the strategic partnership between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. The agenda proposed by Turkmenistan covers security, the economy, energy, transport, water resources and humanitarian ties. Cooperation between Tashkent and Ashgabat in each of these areas can produce results of significance for the region as a whole.

Foundation for bilateral relations was laid by the 1996 Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, while a new stage began in March 2017. Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s first foreign visit as head of state was to Turkmenistan and culminated in the signing of the Treaty on Strategic Partnership. The Declaration signed on October 21^st, 2022, reaffirmed the course towards deepening the partnership, expanding economic ties and developing cooperation on the international stage.

“The continuity of this political course is ensured by regular dialogue between President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and National Leader of the Turkmen People Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, Vladislav Tyan writes. - A vivid confirmation of this was the state visit of the President of Turkmenistan to Uzbekistan in November 2025, following which a number of agreements were signed in the areas of border trade, agriculture, healthcare and interregional ties”.

Publication notes that the material foundation for closer ties is demonstrated by the rapid growth in bilateral trade. According to Uzbekistan’s National Statistics Committee, trade turnover increased from $177.9 million in 2017 to $1.2 billion in 2025, or nearly 6.8 times. In January–August 2026, trade turnover reached $807.4 million, up 5.7 percent compared with the same period a year earlier. A free trade regime has been in effect since February 25, 2025. The transport and transit sector is identified as one of the key areas of bilateral cooperation.

In conclusion, Vladislav Tyan emphasizes that the new stage in the partnership between Tashkent and Ashgabat is defined by its contribution to the broader architecture of regional security and sustainable development.