TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, January 15. Uzbekistan and the European Commission expressed interest in signing the agreement on enhanced partnership and cooperation between Uzbekistan and the EU, initialled on July 6, 2022, as soon as possible, Trend reports.
This was discussed during a meeting between the special representative of Uzbekistan's President on Foreign Policy Abdulaziz Kamilov and the Director for Political Coordination and Management at the European Commission, Jivka Petkova in Brussels.
During the meeting, the sides exchanged views on further promotion of Uzbek-European relations and the development of practical interaction in the regional format.
Jivka Petkova highly appreciated the efforts of the Uzbek side in combating climate change and mitigating its negative consequences. Uzbekistan's initiative to hold the International Climate Forum in Samarkand this year was noted.
The sides emphasized the relevance of interaction in the field of critical raw materials by signing a relevant memorandum.
The parties also discussed the schedule of forthcoming joint bilateral and interregional events.
Meanwhile, the European Union plans to allocate 76 million euros to Uzbekistan for the first four years (2021-2024) of its 7-year Multi-Annual Indicative Programme (MIP) 2021-2027. Additional funds are earmarked for human rights support (the tentative allocation is 3.6 million euros for 2021–2024) and civil society organizations (3.4 million euros for 2021–2024).