BEIJING, China: Chinese President Xi Jinping Monday called his Uzbek counterpart Shavkat Mirziyoyev to congratulate him on winning a third term as the head of the Central Asian country, according to state media.
“Xi Jinping pointed out, in recent years, under our joint leadership, China-Uzbekistan relations have achieved breakthrough development, and cooperation in various fields has been comprehensively strengthened,” state broadcaster CCTV said.
Xi told Mirziyoyev he “very much cherishes the good working relationship and personal friendship with you”, CCTV added.
“I am willing to work with you to promote the continuous development of the China-Uzbekistan comprehensive strategic partnership and inject new impetus into the construction of a China-Uzbekistan community with a shared future,” Xi said.
Preliminary results Monday suggested Mirziyoyev will stay as head of the tightly controlled, gas-rich and central Asia’s most populous nation until 2030.
The 65-year-old has promised to open up Uzbekistan to foreign investment and tourism and implement key domestic reforms in the country.
The preliminary results showed Mirziyoyev, who was running against three largely unknown candidates, won Sunday’s election with 87 percent of the vote.
In May, Xi hosted Mirziyoyev and other Central Asian leaders for a summit in the northern Chinese city of Xi’an.
Speaking to regional leaders, the Chinese leader said the countries must “fully unleash the potential of traditional cooperation in economy, trade, industrial capacity, energy and transport”, according to a state media readout at the time. — AFP
