Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- In Vienna, the Ambassador of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Ibragimov met with Deputy Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Head of the Technical Cooperation Department Liu Hua, Dunyo news agency reported.

During the conversation, key aspects of bilateral cooperation were discussed. The readiness of the Department of Technical Cooperation to continue to assist Uzbekistan in the development of nuclear energy, the introduction and use of modern nuclear technologies was emphasized.

The main issue of the meeting was the discussion of the Agency’s new technical cooperation program for 2024-2025. The program stipulates the implementation of new national projects of Uzbekistan aimed at increasing its human resources potential and carrying out joint activities in the field of nuclear energy and safety, in the area of healthcare and to solve environmental problems.

The Deputy Director General of the IAEA proposed expanding the participation of Uzbekistan specialists in projects implemented within the framework of new IAEA initiatives to combat zoonotic diseases (“ZODIAC”), combat plastic pollution (“NUTEC Plastics”), and strengthen cooperation in the fight against cancer (“Rays”) of Hope") and increasing agricultural productivity ("Atoms4Food").

The Atoms4Food project was noted as the most promising area of cooperation with Uzbekistan, which is based on the joint experience of the IAEA and FAO, accumulated over almost 60 years of supporting countries in the use of nuclear and isotope technologies.