Today, the President Shavkat Mirziyoyev delivered remarks at the eighth Central Asia and Azerbaijan Summit in the Avaza national tourist zone in Turkmenistan. Highlights:

Water and climate

"Water and climate change call for joint solutions from the countries of Central Asia. Water scarcity is becoming an ever more serious constraint on the region's development. The climate is changing, the population is growing, and the strain on agriculture and infrastructure is increasing. We therefore need a more precise understanding of how much water we have and how it is used."

"We need to deploy modern digital monitoring systems, upgrade irrigation networks and make wide use of water-saving technologies. Heavy water losses are costing our region far too much today."

"I call for full implementation of the shared initiative on the Decade of Practical Action for the Rational Use of Water in Central Asia."

"Next year, Uzbekistan will chair the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea. We see this mission as a major responsibility. During our chairmanship, we intend to make the fund's work more effective, launch new environmental projects and attract additional financing."

"Dialogue with Afghanistan on the use of water resources deserves particular attention. This conversation must be constant and substantive, with the interests of all countries in the region taken into account."

"Air pollution is becoming one of the most visible problems in Central Asian cities. I would remind you that Uzbekistan has proposed creating an International 'Clean Air Central Asia' Consortium. It could begin with a concrete joint project: a pilot program for the environmental modernization of industrial zones, agro-clusters and transport hubs in our countries. That would let us move from discussing the problem to practical work where the environmental burden is especially heavy."

Economic cooperation

"Economic cooperation among Central Asian countries must reach a new level. We have already set ambitious goals for growth in mutual trade and investment. Now we must determine what will drive that growth. First of all, this means joint industrial and technological chains, shared digital services and investment mechanisms that will let us launch large projects faster."

"The Comprehensive Regional Program of Trade and Economic Cooperation to 2035 must become a working tool that helps Central Asian countries use the region's main advantage: its shared geography. To do that, we must steadily remove trade barriers, expand industrial cooperation and launch more joint projects. We have reached the point where ordinary mutual trade is no longer enough. We need to create a finished product together."

"The concise formula 'six economies, one product' conveys well what we should be aiming for."

"When enterprises from several countries take part in a single production chain, entirely different ties emerge between our economies. They are far stronger than a simple exchange of goods."

"To advance this, I propose holding a Central Asia-Azerbaijan business forum in Khiva in 2027."

"At the same time, I consider it important to create a special platform for financial and technical support of joint investment projects. Big ideas require not only investment but also careful preparation, expertise, clear financial instruments and support."

Format of cooperation

"Cooperation among the countries of the region does not seek to create cumbersome structures. We need a flexible and clear format in which strong, sovereign and independent states cooperate on the basis of mutual respect, trust and pragmatism."

"In creating the Consultative Meetings format, we started from a simple understanding: the well-being and security of Central Asia depend directly on trust among our states. That approach has already produced results. The region is represented far more confidently and visibly on the international stage. Interest in 'Central Asia Plus' formats is growing, and the circle of outside partners is widening."

"The world is changing fast, tensions are rising, trade and transport links are being reshaped and new risks are emerging. In this situation, it is important to coordinate our actions even more closely."

Cooperation with neighboring regions

"I propose that we define the next stage of cooperation between Central Asia and neighboring regions. In effect, we can build a single space of cooperation with established historical, economic and transport ties. Today there is an opportunity to make those ties much stronger and give them concrete substance."

"This is about a large space in which our countries can jointly develop trade, transport, energy, industry and new technologies."

Implementation matters more than documents

"We must continue improving the legal framework for the Consultative Meetings. At the same time, the number of documents decides nothing by itself. It is far more important that decisions already adopted are carried out and deliver the results for which we adopted them."

"In recent years we have achieved a great deal. Now it is important to consolidate these changes and make our cooperation sustainable for decades to come. The formula is simple: solidarity and trust, for the sake of development and security."

"We are responsible for the kind of region we leave to future generations. It must be peaceful, secure and economically strong, and it must give people the opportunity to live, work, study and raise children with dignity."

Transport and logistics

"The countries of Central Asia must be linked by a modern transport and logistics network. We can become one of the key overland routes of global trade and, at the same time, a major center of economic activity. But building roads and railways alone is not enough. We need a shared logic for developing transport infrastructure."

"Large projects should be coordinated so that routes extend one another and work as a single system. Along the new transport corridors, we need to open factories, logistics and service facilities and industrial zones. Then a transport route builds an economy around itself and brings far greater benefit to every country it passes through."

"I propose speeding up the creation of a Council on Infrastructure Development and holding its first meeting in Uzbekistan."