SAMARKAND: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday met Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit here and the two leaders discussed ways to deepen connectivity, trade and cultural cooperation between their countries.
Prime Minister Modi earlier attended the 22nd SCO summit, which was hosted by President Mirziyoyev in this historic Uzbek city of Samarkand.
"Had a great meeting with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. Thanked him for hosting the SCO Summit. Discussed ways to deepen connectivity, trade and cultural cooperation between India and Uzbekistan," Modi tweeted.
This is a special year for the two countries as it marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that their discussions focused on economic cooperation and connectivity between the two countries.
The two leaders appreciated the overall progress in bilateral relations, including the implementation of decisions of the Virtual Summit in December 2020.
They touched upon priority areas of bilateral cooperation, particularly trade, economic cooperation and connectivity.
"They also stressed the need to make concerted efforts to diversify the trade basket and enter into long-term arrangements to promote trade and investment. Connectivity was considered key to unlocking the potential in this regard, including greater usage of the Chabahar port and the International North-South Transport Corridor," the MEA said in a release.
The two leaders emphasised cooperation in fields like Information Technology, healthcare, higher education etc., based upon India's developmental experience and expertise.
The opening of Indian educational institutions and the partnership between Uzbek and Indian universities was welcomed.
The regional issues, including Afghanistan, were also discussed in the meeting and the two leaders were unanimous in their view that the territory of the war-torn country should not be used for terrorist activities, the MEA said.
The leaders attached great importance to the outcomes of the First India-Central Asia Summit held in January this year. They acknowledged the progress being made in the implementation of the Summit decisions, it said.
Prime Minister Modi also congratulated President Mirziyoyev for the excellent organization of the SCO Summit and Uzbekistan's successful chairmanship.
The SCO was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
Over the years, it has emerged as one of the largest trans-regional international organisations. India and Pakistan became its permanent members in 2017.