Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- An opening ceremony of the exhibition “Rishtan ceramics: the pearl of pottery art of Central Asia” and a permanent showroom of Uzbek ceramics took place in Washington, Dunyo news agency reported.

The event was attended by more than 500 American artists, collectors, representatives of big business, government, political, scientific circles, experts and the media, as well as compatriots who came from different states of America.

Guests also included Special Assistant to the President Nicholas Berliner, Welfare and Disability Adviser Sarah Minkara, Principal Under Secretary of Commerce Marisa Lago, USAID Deputy Director Anjali Kaur and members of Congress.

The event was also attended by correspondents from such publications as Bloomberg, Voice of America, Diplomat, The National Geographic and UzReport.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the exhibition, Special Assistant to the US President Nicholas Berliner noted that Uzbekistan has been a center of culture and development for centuries, and unique forms of art such as Rishtan pottery have been formed on its soil.

“Today, the leadership of Uzbekistan and its people not only carefully preserve this ancient pottery school, but also promote it on a global scale. A striking example of this is today’s exhibition in Washington,” he emphasized.

He expressed gratitude on behalf of the White House administration for the exhibition, organized to familiarize Americans with the national pottery art of Uzbekistan, which has a centuries-old history.

Nicholas Berliner noted the positive changes taking place in Uzbekistan and emphasized that today our republic has become an economic catalyst for the region and plays the role of a solid foundation for a stable future in Central Asia.

“The United States is committed to supporting all reforms in New Uzbekistan. We express our readiness to further strengthen and expand the scope of friendly relations between Washington and Tashkent, based on mutual trust, respect and equality,” he concluded his speech.

First Deputy Minister of Commerce Marisa Lago emphasized that the development of economic relations between the United States and Uzbekistan was greatly facilitated by the visit of the head of our state to the United States in September 2023 and the agreements reached as a result.

Given that the art of Uzbek ceramics is of great interest to Americans, she acknowledged that a new “growth point” has opened for trade between the two countries.

Deputy Head of USAID Anjali Kaur emphasized that she was looking forward to the opening of the exhibition, as she had been interested in ceramics for a long time.

According to her, after returning from a trip to Uzbekistan in 2023, USAID Administrator Samantha Power shared with her her wonderful impressions of the crafts of our country.

“Since the beautiful and unique Rishtan ceramics are a new direction for the American public, interest in it is increasing compared to the art of other countries. For example, the exhibition held at the Embassy of Uzbekistan, and future seminars and master classes within its framework, caused a great stir among the American public,” he added.

She shared that she signed up for a master class organized in Washington and expressed USAID’s readiness to help in jointly developing a number of development programs for the Rishtan School.

As part of the exhibition, an agreement on the purchase of ceramic products was signed between the American company "DIAMOND Inc." and Mingboshi Ceramic LLC from Rishtan in the amount of $5 million, a distribution agreement between the American trading company ASU Trading LLC and the Rishtan-based Exclusive Ceramic of Rishtan LLC on the sale of ceramic products in the American states.

Agreements were reached to organize joint work between the Rishtan district administration, USAID and the Alexandria Clay Cooperative studio to create the Rishtan Pottery School in the USA and organize trips for American pottery lovers to Rishtan.