EU, Central Asian Countries Commit To Strengthen Coop.

11/18/2022 3:13:40 PM

(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) BRUSSELS, Nov 18 (KUNA) -- The European Union (EU) and Central Asia have confirmed their commitment to strengthen cooperation to support a green and sustainable post-COVID-19 recovery.
This commitment came out of the 18th EU-Central Asia Ministerial meeting held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Thursday, according to a statement by the EUآ's diplomatic service, called the European External Action Service, on Friday.
The two sides also reaffirmed their commitment to work together to tackle challenges emerging from regional dynamics, with a focus on the fall-out of the war in Ukraine and the situation in Afghanistan, it said.
EU High Representative Josep Borrell who chaired the meeting on behalf of the 27-member bloc in press statements said: 'The EUآ's relations with our Central Asian partners have gone from strength to strength in the thirty years since we established diplomatic relations.'
'The EU has high stakes in seeing Central Asia develop since together we are stronger to face the challenges in our increasingly complex world,' he said.
Borrel said he the meeting in Samarkand sends 'a strong sense of optimism that together we can make a meaningful contribution to stability, security and prosperity in Central Asia and Europe.'
The meeting was hosted by the Foreign Minister of Uzbekistan, Vladimir Norov, with the participation of the Foreign Ministers of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and the Deputy Foreign Minister of Kyrgyztan and Turkmenistan.
The Ministerial meeting took place just a few weeks after the holding of the first meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia and the President of the European Council Charles Michel on 27 October, in Astana.
In 2019, the EU adopted a new Strategy on Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan), which highlights the growing strategic relevance of the region for EU interests.
The EU has significant stakes in Central Asia, given the strategic geographical location and pivotal role of the region in Europe-Asia connectivity, its vast energy resources (Kazakhstan is the EUآ's fourth supplier of crude oil), significant market potential (70 million inhabitants, 35 percent of whom are under the age of 15), and the EUآ's interest in regional security and migration. (end)
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