Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 6 June, on the eve of the official visit of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the Italian Republic, a joint business forum was held in Rome, which was attended by heads of relevant ministries and departments, as well as more than 200 representatives of leading business circles of the two countries.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy Edmondo Chirielli, opening the event, emphasized the growing interest of the Italian business community in Uzbekistan. The upcoming visit of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Italy is called a historic event, and its rich political and business agenda, as well as the mutual desire to develop multilateral partnership, is a reflection of the highest level of modern relations between our countries.

“Uzbekistan is a bridge between Europe and Asia, a country that is strategic in terms of partnership and has great potential. We want to be involved in the modern development of Uzbekistan and are ready to deepen our multilateral relations. Entrepreneurs are ready to cooperate, offering high technology, high quality products, demonstrating high interest. We will provide support to realize the full potential of bilateral cooperation,” said Edmondo Chirielli.

In turn, the Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan Laziz Kudratov, addressing the forum participants with a welcoming speech, noted the importance of holding events of this magnitude in the context of discussing practical opportunities for deepening cooperation between the two countries.

Uzbekistan, it was noted, attaches particular importance to the further strengthening of comprehensive cooperation with Italy, which is one of the largest trade partners of Uzbekistan in the European Union.

A number of results achieved in the field of trade and investment partnership and industrial cooperation were announced. In particular, over the past four years alone, the volume of Italian investments attracted to Uzbekistan has grown 7 times, and the number of enterprises with Italian capital operating in our country has doubled. Among the major partners are Danieli, Pietro Fiorentini, Terranova, Fin opera, represented in the field of metallurgy, electrical industry, jewelry production and agriculture, respectively.

All this indicates a significant intensification of bilateral cooperation and filling the agenda of Uzbek-Italian relations with practical, qualitative content.

During the business forum, the heads of Italian companies were presented with the investment potential of Uzbekistan, announced the results of the reforms being carried out in the country aimed at creating comfortable conditions for the work of business in general, and foreign investors in particular.

The most promising areas for building long-term and mutually beneficial cooperation are the textile industry, agriculture and processing of agricultural products, the production of building materials, metallurgy, the chemical and automotive industries, electronics and many others.

In continuation of the rich program of the event, meetings were held in the B2B and G2B format, which allowed representatives of the business community to discuss the practical aspects of the joint implementation of specific investment initiatives. Real cases are given that reflect the investment potential of driver areas.

As a result of the Forum, a package of investment agreements and trade contracts was signed covering the energy, agriculture, chemical industry, leather and footwear, textile and engineering industries, ecology, transport and logistics, as well as the banking sector.