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India and Uzbekistan are looking to deepen bilateral economic and financial cooperation, with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Uzbekistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Jamshid Kuchkarov discussing ways to strengthen engagement between the two countries.
Sitharaman met Kuchkarov in New Delhi on Sunday, with the two sides exchanging views on areas of mutual interest and exploring avenues to further strengthen economic and financial ties, the Ministry of Finance said in a post on X. The meeting comes as India continues to expand its economic engagement with Central Asian countries, with greater cooperation in trade, investment and financial sectors offering scope to strengthen bilateral economic links. The discussions between the two finance ministers focused on areas where both countries can build closer institutional and economic cooperation. The meeting also assumes significance as India has been seeking to strengthen its engagement with Central Asia through greater economic and connectivity cooperation. Uzbekistan, as the region's most populous country and a key Central Asian economy, remains an important partner for India's regional economic outreach. The two sides also exchanged views on issues of mutual interest, although the Ministry of Finance did not provide details of specific sectors or initiatives discussed during the meeting. The engagement with Uzbekistan came alongside Sitharaman's separate meeting with Iranian Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance Seyed Ali Madanizadeh in New Delhi. During that meeting, Sitharaman thanked Iran for its active participation in the BRICS Summit and its engagement in discussions under the Finance Track. The two sides also exchanged views on economic cooperation in areas of mutual interest. India's parallel engagements with Uzbekistan and Iran come as New Delhi continues to use multilateral and bilateral platforms to strengthen economic partnerships with key countries. The discussions with Uzbekistan, in particular, are expected to support efforts to deepen financial and economic cooperation and identify additional areas for collaboration between the two economies. (ANI)
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