Via Times of Central Asia, a report on growing relations between Uzbekistan and China:

China and Uzbekistan on August 18 pledged to strengthen bilateral cooperation in various fields and boost bilateral relations, Xinhua news agency reported.

The two sides held the sixth meeting of the China-Uzbekistan intergovernmental cooperation committee via video link. The meeting was co-chaired by Guo Shengkun, who is the committee’s Chinese chairman, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and head of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the CPC Central Committee; and Uzbek Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov, who is the Uzbek chairman of the cooperation committee.

Guo said China and Uzbekistan have become good partners and good friends, adding that the cooperation between the two sides in economy and trade, energy, transportation, science and technology, people-to-people and cultural exchanges, security, agriculture, and poverty reduction achieved tangible results since the fifth meeting of the cooperation committee.

Noting that this year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Uzbekistan, Guo said both sides should give full play to the committee’s role and promote more robust, in-depth and solid bilateral cooperation in various fields.

Aripov said Uzbekistan regards China as a reliable partner and will continue to use the intergovernmental cooperation committee as a platform to strengthen high-level strategic communication and coordination between the two countries and push bilateral relations to a new level.