MOSCOW, August 27. /Dunyo IA/. Doctor of Economics, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Deputy Director for Scientific Work at the Primakov Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO RAS) Sergey Afontsev, on the eve of the 35^th Anniversary of the Independence of Uzbekistan, has extended his sincere congratulations and best wishes to the people of Uzbekistan through Dunyo IA:

- Over the years since the attainment of independence by the new states of Eurasia that emerged in the post-Soviet space, the world has changed fundamentally. Some of these changes have been objectively positive in nature, while others cannot but cause serious concern. The most distressing reality of contemporary world politics is that fewer and fewer states prove ready and able to defend their national interests, guided by their own strategic priorities and the aspirations of their peoples. I am sincerely glad that among the countries ready and able to do so is Uzbekistan – a country whose 35^th Anniversary of Independence we celebrate this year.

In the period following the attainment of independence, Uzbekistan faced serious challenges in the political and economic spheres, which the prudent political choices of the country's people and its state leadership helped to overcome. Having passed through the severe trials of the first decades of independence, the country found the strength to enter a new stage of development with a new agenda, new ideas and new human resource potential.

New, independent Uzbekistan has successfully solved many tasks imposed by the realities of the newly emerging world order. Key territorial issues with neighbouring countries have been settled. The core goals for the development of the national economy have been formulated. Priorities for international positioning have been defined, enabling the country to pursue an independent, nationally oriented foreign policy course.

Since December 2020, Uzbekistan has held the status of an observer state in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), gaining the opportunity to objectively assess the benefits of interaction with the full member states of the EAEU. The country's leadership has proposed important initiatives potentially capable of shaping a new configuration of logistical links between the countries of Central and South Asia. The annual growth rates of the gross domestic product (GDP) in real terms have exceeded 7 percent, which is a clear consequence of the nationally oriented strategy of Uzbekistan's leadership to preserve and develop economic ties with reliable partners focused on long-term, mutually beneficial cooperation – despite external pressure aimed at abandoning the national interests of the people of Uzbekistan. First and foremost, this concerns the preservation and development of cooperation with Russia, which is consistently interested in equal and mutually beneficial interaction with Uzbekistan and in understanding and taking into account the interconnected economic interests of our countries.

On my own behalf and on behalf of the Primakov Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO RAS), I express my sincere congratulations to the people of Uzbekistan on the occasion of the 35^th Anniversary of State Independence. Allow me to assure you that the partnership, friendly, and in many families - kinship relations between the representatives of our countries will always serve as a guarantee of mutual understanding and friendship between our peoples.