Uzbek President Calls for Joint Development Leap with South Korea at Inaugural Summit

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev called for a “joint leap in development” with South Korea, emphasizing advanced technology, investment and human capital as pillars of the partnership before the first Korea-Central Asia Summit in Seoul. He expects the summit, which brings together Korea, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, to adopt a Seoul Declaration and secure breakthrough agreements on investment.

Citing a fivefold rise in trade and more than $8 billion of Korean capital, Mirziyoyev noted over 700 joint projects and a $3.5 billion portfolio with KOICA and the Export-Import Bank of Korea. He singled out AI, critical minerals, semiconductors, robotics, electric transport, biopharma and smart cities as priority areas, urging Korean chaebols to move beyond trade into high-value production in Uzbekistan. The president also stressed the role of youth, proposing expanded university exchanges and joint research centres. Finally, he linked stronger bilateral ties to broader regional cooperation, positioning South Korea as a key player in Central Asia’s growing economies.