Russia hailed Uzbekistan’s ratification of an agreement on the creation of nuclear free zone in Central Asia, a Russian Foreign Ministry’s statement said on 25 April.

Uzbekistan ratified agreement in creation of nuclear free zone on 2 April 2007. Uzbek President Islam Karimov signed the law on 2 April 2007, while Legislative Chamber (lower house) of Oliy Majlis of Uzbekistan (parliament) passed the law on 26 January 2007 and Senate (upper house) approved it on 30 March 2007.

The Russian Foreign Ministry described ratification as “an important step aimed at strengthening the nuclear non-proliferation regime.” The statement said Russia supports creation of nuclear weapons free zones in various regions of the world.

The agreement was signed by foreign ministers of Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan in Kazakhstan’s Semipalatinsk (the former Soviet Union’s nuclear test site) in September 2006.