India-Uzbekistan hold first National Coordination Committee meeting

India-Uzbekistan hold first National Coordination Committee meeting

   Kautilya Academy    25-08-2020

On August 24, 2020, India and Uzbekistan held their first National Coordination Committee meeting where they discussed their bilateral interests such as trade and investment and Line of Credit projects.

Highlights

The meeting was co-chaired by the Indian External Affairs Minister and Uzbekistan Deputy Prime Minister. The countries have a bilateral trade of over 300 million USD. Pharmaceuticals is the major area of trade between the countries. Also, medical tourism has increased between the countries in the recent past.

A Joint Centre of Information Technology was set up in 2006 and was upgraded in 2014. Also, the Indian companies have made suitable investments in amusement parks, pharmaceuticals, automobile components, and the hospitality industry.

In July 2019, an IT park was established in Tashkent, Uzbekistan with Indian assistance.


Dustlik: India-Uzbekistan joint military exercise

Dustlik is the military exercise conducted jointly by India and Uzbekistan. It was held for the first time in 2019 at the Chirchiq Training Area of Uzbekistan. The exercise focused on counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency in rural and urban regions.


India-Uzbekistan military cooperation

In 2019, India and Uzbekistan signed Memorandum of Understanding to enhance military medicine and military education ties between the armed forces of the two countries.


Why is Uzbekistan important to India?

Uzbekistan is important for India for its uranium supplies. After Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan is the second Central Asian country to supply Uranium to India. In January 2019, India and Uzbekistan signed an agreement for the long-term supply of Uranium to power India’s domestic atomic reactors.

Uzbekistan is the seventh-largest exporter of Uranium in the world according to the World Nuclear Association.

Currently, India is also importing Uranium from Canada. There are plans to import Uranium from Australia as well.

Apart from nuclear fuel, China is another reason. China has used the Belt Road Initiative and has made inroads taking advantage of its strategic location. Therefore, it is important for India to extend its role as a regional player.


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