TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, August 6. Uzbekistan’s Minister of Investments, Industry and Trade, Laziz Kudratov, signed an agreement with representatives of the Government of Turkmenistan and international organizations on the launch of a Border Trade Zone between Shavat in the Khorezm and Dashoguz region, Trend reports.
The establishment of this trade zone is expected to become an important step in boosting bilateral trade and increasing cross-border business activity. During the meeting, both sides also agreed to adopt a Joint Action Plan aimed at increasing mutual trade turnover between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan $2 billion was agreed upon.
As part of the visit, Kudratov held talks with senior Turkmen officials, including Nazar Agakhanov, Minister of Trade and Foreign Economic Relations, and Toiguly Nurov, Minister of Industry and Construction. He also met with Fatu Haidara, Deputy Director-General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization UNIDO, and Dmitry Maryasin, Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNECE
With UNIDO, an agreement was reached to implement a medium-term Partnership Program covering industrial cooperation, infrastructure modernization, the promotion of energy-efficient technologies, and human capital development with the support of international expertise
In collaboration with UNECE, the parties explored opportunities to enhance cooperation under the framework of SPECA, the Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia, with particular emphasis on initiating joint projects in priority sectors such as green economy, innovation, logistics, smart agriculture, and related fields.
Trade turnover between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan reached 1.15 billion dollars in 2024. In the first half of 2025, mutual trade approached 500 million dollars, reflecting steady growth in economic cooperation between the two countries