Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Sep. 20 / Trend, D.Azizov /
The main events surrounding the visit of Uzbek President Islam Karimov's state visit to South Korea are underway, the Uzbek National Information Agency (UzA) said today.
Karimov arrived in Korea at the invitation of President Lee Myung-bak. After the official welcoming ceremony at the airport in the capital of Seoul, the national flags of both countries were raised in honour of the Uzbek president and a guard of honour was lined up, UzA reported.
The main events of the visit includes an official meeting of the presidents of the two countriesand negotiations with the representatives of the key ministries and departments, as well as the heads of the largest South Korean companies are scheduled for September 20-21.
In a joint statement it was said the package of documents aimed at further development of relations between the two countries in the spirit of the Joint Declaration on Strategic Partnership signed in 2006 will be adopted following the visit.
The visit is being held as part of regular Uzbek-Korean high-level relations. In an atmosphere of openness and mutual understanding, the sides discussed a range of issues on the state and prospects of development of multifaceted cooperation and exchange views on a broad range of regional and international issues.
The mutual visits of the presidents to Uzbekistan in May 2009 and South Korea in February 2010 confirmed the parties' commitment to the further development of strategic partnership agreements and the implementation of the agreements reached at previous summits.
A meeting of Presidents Karimov and Lee Myung-bak in August 2011 in Tashkent and agreements on promising joint projects in various sectors of the economy signed during Korean President's visit to Uzbekistan have given a new impetus to bilateral cooperation.
Currently, the total amount of South Korean investments in Uzbekistan's economy is more than $5 billion, including development of $2 billion. In 2011, bilateral trade amounted to $1.6 billion. In Uzbekistan there are more than 350 companies with the South Korean capital in the fields of light, chemical industry, food industry, commerce, engineering industry, housing and utilities, healthcare, tourism and services.