Uzbekistan, Tashkent, July 4 /Trend D.Azizov/
Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Korea Kim Sung-Hwan discussed state and prospects of bilateral relations and issues of cooperation within international organizations on Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry of Uzbekistan said.
Kamilov led a delegation of Uzbekistan, which arrived in Seoul to attend the sixth meeting of the Forum on the cooperation Republic of Korea - Central Asia.
The ministers exchanged views on the implementation of previously signed Uzbek-South Korean agreements and the agreements and the schedule of upcoming international contacts during the meeting, the Foreign Ministry of Uzbekistan said
Considerable experience of mutually beneficial cooperation in political, economic, trade, investment, cultural and humanitarian fields is accumulated during the 20 years of establishment of diplomatic relations between the countries.
During the meeting the ministers also discussed cooperation in education, health, tourism, sports, academic and student exchanges, and culture.
The parties noted that the regular political dialogue at the highest level is a reliable basis for friendly relations between the countries. Meeting of presidents Islam Karimov and Lee Myung Bak, which took place in August 2011 in Tashkent and agreement on joint long-term projects in various sectors of the economy signed during the visit of the president of Korea to Uzbekistan gave new impetus to bilateral cooperation.
As previously reported, a number of intergovernmental documents, including an agreement on temporary employment of citizens of one State to another State, a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministries of Economy of Uzbekistan and Korea, on partnership in the field of industrial and energy cooperation was signed during the visit.
In addition, National Holding Company (NHC) Uzbekneftegaz signed four contracts with Korean companies for the construction of Ustyurt gas and chemical complex in the field Surgil (Ustyurt region) in Uzbekistan worth $2, 6 billion.
Currently, the total amount of the claimed South Korean investments in Uzbek economy exceeded $5 billion, including spent - $2 billion. Bilateral trade volume totaled 1.6 billion in 2011. There are more than 360 companies with Korean capital, including 59 companies wholly owned by Korea, more than 80 accredited representatives of South Korean companies in Uzbekistan.