Qatar and Uzbekistan strengthened their strategic partnership by establishing a coordination council between their foreign ministries and signing agreements on the sidelines of the second ministerial meeting of the Strategic Dialogue between the Gulf Cooperation Council and Central Asian states.

Qatar and Uzbekistan signed an agreement on strategic partnership and the establishment of the coordination council between both countries’ foreign ministries on Monday.

The signing took place in Tashkent between Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, and Uzbekistan’s foreign minister Bakhtiyor Saidov.

The two officials met on the sidelines of the second ministerial meeting of the Strategic Dialogue between the Gulf Cooperation Council and Central Asian states. The meeting took place in preparation for the second joint summit, scheduled to take place in Samarkand next year.

“We [GCC and Central Asia] have close and common historical relations, and we look forward to moving forward in strengthening them based on the joint action plan between the two parties,” Sheikh Mohammed said on X.

The meeting in the Uzbek capital aimed to strengthen ties between the Gulf bloc and Central Asia. The first meeting took place in Riyadh in September 2022, during which the members reviewed the 2023-2027 joint action plan for the joint strategic dialogue.

The latest gathering ended with a joint statement between the GCC and Central Asian countries over their commitment to enhancing their partnerships “based on common values, interests, and historical ties.”

Qatar-Uzbekistan ties

Doha and Tashkent’s bilateral ties date back to 1997, when both countries signed a protocol that officially marked the start of their diplomatic relations.

Uzbekistan was also the first stop of Qatar Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani’s “milestone” Central Asia tour in June 2023, where he met with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Samarkand.

The two leaders had discussed regional and international developments. Sheikh Tamim and President Mirziyoyev also planted a tree at Samarkand’s Congress Center garden.

Sheikh Tamim had visited Uzbekistan last December for the seventh edition of the International Anti-Corruption Excellence Award ceremony. Sheikh Tamim and President Mirziyoyev held official talks in Tashkent at the time.

In October last year, Uzbekistan’s president visited Qatar, where the two countries signed new agreements and memoranda.

The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding between Doha and Tashkent’s interior ministries over the cooperation in combating and preventing crime.

Another MoU between Qatar’s Administrative Control and Transparency and Uzbekistan’s Anti-Corruption Agency aimed at combating corruption. 

The two countries signed a third MoU in the field of investment between the Qatar Investment Authority and Uzbekistan’s Fund for Reconstruction and Development.