MOSCOW, August 25. /Dunyo IA/. State visit of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev to Uzbekistan and his talks with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Tashkent are being covered by Russian media as a historic milestone in deepening allied relations and practical integration, reports Dunyo IA correspondent.

Central events included the signing by the two heads of state of the historic Treaty, marking the transition of bilateral ties to an unprecedented level of political trust; the third meeting of the Supreme Interstate Council, at which the sides underscored the convergence of their positions on key regional and international issues; and the mutual conferment of the countries’ highest state orders on the two leaders. President Ilham Aliyev was awarded Uzbekistan’s Order of “Oliy Darajali Dustlik”, while President Shavkat Mirziyoyev was awarded Azerbaijan’s “Heydar Aliyev” Order.

Publications highlight the strengthening of allied relations, the growth of bilateral trade and the formation of a new security and logistics architecture across the Eurasian space. They widely quote President Ilham Aliyev as saying that Uzbekistan is demonstrating impressive rates of economic growth, while the previously signed treaties on allied relations have elevated bilateral ties to a qualitatively new level.

In terms of economic integration, the media focus on joint projects in the fields of energy, transport, logistics and industrial cooperation, including the development of the Middle Corridor. In particular, “Interfax” news agency and “Kommersant” and “Vedomosti” newspapers place particular emphasis on the threefold growth in bilateral trade in recent years and the ambitious goal of increasing it to $1 billion by 2030.

Experts note the practical implementation of joint projects, including the activities of the Uzbek-Azerbaijani Investment Fund, the expansion of financial cooperation and investment in infrastructure.

Popular newspapers “Komsomolskaya Pravda” and “AiF” and news agencies “Interfax” and “RIA Novosti” emphasize the strategic convergence of the positions of Baku and Tashkent on developing the potential of the Trans-Caspian Corridor and initiatives to optimize logistics routes. In the Russian media agenda, the visit is presented both as a political consolidation of bilateral allied relations and as a practical step towards developing a new transport and logistics network across the Caspian Sea.

Particular attention is paid to the laying of the foundation stone for “Azerbaijan” Park in New Tashkent, the opening of the National Pedagogical University named after Nizami Ganjavi, and the establishment of twinning relations between the historic cities of the two countries, highlighting the cultural and humanitarian dimension of the rapprochement between the two countries.

“Mir 24” television channel and “Vedomosti” also covered the launch by the heads of state of new joint projects in the oil and gas and banking and financial sectors, the mining industry, energy, chemical and textile industries, agriculture, and urban development.