US economy will grow by billions of dollars
Uzbekistan and the US have formed a $12 billion package of agreements
US Economy to Gain Billions of Dollars
Uzbekistan and the United States have formed a package of 54 agreements and promising initiatives worth approximately $12 billion. President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced this on October 19 in Samarkand at the second meeting of the Uzbek-American Business and Investment Council, which was attended by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and more than 200 American businesspeople.
As Mirziyoyev noted, the sides prepared for the meeting through large-scale joint work involving 45 ministries and agencies of Uzbekistan. Each of the presented American companies received a specific partner among government bodies, regional administrations, and leading Uzbek companies. To launch the projects, the president proposed preparing a comprehensive action plan.
"Relations between Uzbekistan and the United States today have reached the highest level in the entire history of our cooperation," Mirziyoyev said. He stressed the significant role of US President Donald Trump in this process and added that Uzbekistan has no such cooperation mechanism with any other country.
The president outlined the three most promising areas of interaction. The first is critical minerals: Uzbekistan is ready to be a reliable partner to the US in this area and build a full production cycle — from field development and deep processing of raw materials to the manufacturing of high-tech products. The second is energy, in the modernization of which, including the development of renewable sources and energy storage systems, American companies are invited to participate. The third is digital technologies and artificial intelligence, where the strategic goal is to transform Uzbekistan into a regional hub for advanced technologies. Mirziyoyev pointed to opportunities for building data centers and recalled that there are nearly 10 million young people in the country.
To increase the effectiveness of cooperation, the president proposed focusing on three priorities. The first is creating clear and predictable conditions for American investors. Uzbekistan is moving to a plug-and-play operating model, offering turn-key projects with sites, connected infrastructure, and all necessary permits. Uzbek entrepreneurs are ready to share investment risks, and the newly established direct investment fund can participate in such projects. The second priority is shifting from individual projects to a broad industrial partnership with the formation of joint clusters and research centers. The third is preparing a joint program of trade, investment, and technological cooperation until 2035.
Marco Rubio acknowledged that US foreign policy had long been focused on crises and missed opportunities, including in Central Asia. According to him, changes began ten years ago, and under President Trump this process accelerated. The Secretary of State recalled the White House summit last year and the invitation of several countries in the region, including Uzbekistan, as observers to the G20 summit in the US at the end of the year.
Rubio linked the growing interest in Uzbekistan to the reforms carried out by Mirziyoyev. As an example, he cited indicators from the aviation industry: last year, the country's airports served 15.5 million passengers, which is 15% more than a year earlier, with nearly 10 million accounted for by Tashkent International Airport. Cargo traffic volume increased by 12% to 98.2 thousand tons.
The Secretary of State listed projects already being implemented. The Colorado School of Mines is helping modernize the extraction and processing of critical minerals; Boeing and GE Aerospace are supplying engines, components, and training for Uzbek airlines, and last year Boeing sold 22 wide-body 787 Dreamliner aircraft to the national carrier Uzbekistan Airways. The University of Texas at Dallas is collaborating with the Samarkand Quantum Center. The US is also participating in the deployment of small modular reactors and the modernization of Uzbekistan's power grids and gas distribution system. In addition, Rubio announced that Uzbek company AKFA Group is investing $80 million in manufacturing in Bowling Green, Kentucky — the Uzbek company's first production facility in the US.
Following the meeting, the parties exchanged documents on cooperation in the fields of transport, the chemical industry, geology, and finance.