Uzbek president arrives in Pakistan on a 2-day state visit

Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Mirziyoyev arrived in Pakistan on Thursday for a two-day state visit.

He was welcomed by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at Nur Khan Airbase in Rawalpindi, adjacent to the capital Islamabad.

The Uzbek president is accompanied by a high-level delegation including senior cabinet ministers and business leaders.

During his stay, he will meet Zardari, hold delegation-level talks with Sharif and address the Pakistan-Uzbekistan Business Forum, according to a statement from Pakistan Foreign Ministry.

"Discussions will focus on reviewing the entire gamut of bilateral relations and identifying new avenues to further deepen cooperation in diverse sectors including trade, energy, defence, education, people-to-people exchanges, and regional connectivity," the ministry said.

This is Mirziyoyev's second visit to Pakistan, following his previous visit in 2022. Pakistan and Uzbekistan established formal diplomatic relations in 1992, and bilateral trade between the two countries reached approximately $450 million last year.

The Uzbek president arrived a day after Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev concluded his visit to Pakistan, marking the first state visit by a Kazakh leader in 23 years.

During Tokayev's trip, Pakistan and Kazakhstan elevated ties to "strategic partnership," and the two sides vowed to boost trade to $1 billion.