Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — On 4 July, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev took part in the 17th Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), held in the city of Khankendi.

The summit, chaired by President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, brought together heads of state and government from member countries, including President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian, President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sadyr Japarov, President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of the Republic of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Shahbaz Sharif, Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov, Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov, Acting Deputy Prime Minister of Afghanistan Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, as well as ECO Secretary General Asad Majid Khan and heads of delegations from other countries and regional organizations.

The participants discussed current international and regional issues, as well as ways to further strengthen multilateral cooperation within the Organization.

In his speech, the President of Uzbekistan drew attention to the modern threats to sustainable development and international security, emphasizing the importance of resolving disputes exclusively by peaceful means — through diplomacy and constructive dialogue. He underlined that achieving lasting peace in the Middle East is impossible without a just resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Turning to the main agenda, Shavkat Mirziyoyev proposed the adoption of the Strategic Goals of Economic Partnership – 2035, a new concept which, along with traditional areas of cooperation, should give special focus to innovation, artificial intelligence, and digital technologies.

He highlighted the importance of trade liberalization, eliminating technical and non-tariff barriers, and developing e-commerce. In this regard, he proposed holding a meeting of ECO trade ministers in Tashkent this year to coordinate a Trade Facilitation Agreement.

He also put forward the idea of establishing a “green corridor” system to enable efficient data exchange and unhindered trade in agricultural products.

To expand investment cooperation, President Mirziyoyev proposed the adoption of a long-term EcoInvest program aimed at attracting private capital, banks, and international financial institutions to implement promising regional projects.

Amid shifting geopolitical conditions, he identified the development of alternative transport routes as a strategic priority. He emphasized the significance of the China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan railway project, which could be logically connected to the Trans-Afghan Corridor to ensure reliable integration of regional transport networks.

He also proposed accelerating the launch of a Digital Transport and Customs Authority to coordinate efforts in the digital transformation of the logistics sector.

Among the key priorities, he mentioned expanding the regional air transport network, introducing new formats of cooperation between airlines, and developing comprehensive marketing strategies in tourism and aviation. To this end, he proposed holding a forum of national airlines of ECO member states in Samarkand.

The President emphasized the potential for significantly increasing tourist flows and stressed the need to adopt a dedicated “roadmap” for the development of tourism services within the Organization.

In the context of the global climate agenda, Shavkat Mirziyoyev initiated the creation of a transboundary Green Program aimed at afforestation and the development of recreational zones in desert regions.

He praised the activities of the High-Level Committee and proposed assigning it the task of preparing concrete recommendations to improve the Organization's working mechanisms ahead of the next summit.

In conclusion, the President of Uzbekistan expressed confidence that the outcomes of the current forum would mark an important milestone in expanding practical cooperation among ECO member states and open new prospects for multilateral collaboration.