09.10.2026

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyyevich!

Dear colleagues!

I am glad to once again welcome all participants of our meeting.

First of all, I would like to sincerely thank the President of Turkmenistan, esteemed Serdar Gurbangulyyevich Berdimuhamedov, for the warm hospitality we invariably receive here.

I welcome the guest of honour of our meeting, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, esteemed Masoud Pezeshkian.

I would also like to thank all colleagues for supporting the decision on the chairmanship of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the CIS in 2027.

For us, chairing the Commonwealth means, first of all, an opportunity to contribute to our common work, to offer new ideas and to jointly advance the areas that are truly important for our countries today.

Next year we will focus on issues that deliver clear and tangible results. These are the economy, new technologies, transport, security, education, science and human capital development.

It is precisely this approach that we have embedded in the motto of Uzbekistan's chairmanship: “The CIS – a space of trust and common development.”

We are now completing work on the Concept of the Chairmanship and the Action Plan. They already include for more than one hundred specific events.

It is important for us that this programme does not remain just a list of initiatives.

For each area there must be clear steps, deadlines and a result toward which we will work together. It is precisely on such practical work that we want to focus during our chairmanship.

Distinguished participants of the meeting!

We need to pay particular attention to political dialogue within the Commonwealth.

Today, when the situation in the world is becoming ever more complex, it is extremely important to openly and constructively discuss any issues, to hear one another and to seek solutions that suit all of us.

Good-neighborliness, trust and mutual understanding remain as the foundation of relations between our countries, and it must be strengthened.

In the economy, we propose placing the main emphasis on industrial cooperation. Our countries possess substantial production capabilities, resources, technologies and markets. If we combine this potential, create joint production facilities and build sustainable supply chains, the result will be far more noticeable for all participants.

Therefore, we will pay particular attention to developing industrial cooperation and improving conditions for mutual investment. At the same time, it is important to continue removing the barriers that still hinder trade between our countries.

A separate area concerns digital technologies.

We consider it important to expand their use in business and develop e-commerce.

At the same time, we cannot limit ourselves only to those sectors that are already well developed. We need to look ahead and work together in the areas on which the competitiveness of our economies will depend in the coming years.

It is about critical minerals, artificial intelligence, robotics, new materials and modern energy technologies. These are the areas where we can’t afford to fall behind and we need to build our own competencies and joint projects.

Another important area of our chairmanship is transport.

Central Asia today is becoming an increasingly important transport hub between East and West, North and South. We need to make full use of these opportunities.

To this end, it is important to simplify transit procedures and create routes that will be convenient, safe and economically beneficial.

We are interested in ensuring that Central Asia's transport network becomes an important part of the overall system of connections across the CIS space and beyond.

Dear colleagues!

Neither the economy, nor trade, nor major joint projects can flourish without security and stability.

Therefore, this area will also remain one of the key ones during our chairmanship. We will support the work of the relevant CIS bodies and the efforts of our countries to counter common threats.

We are talking about terrorism, extremism and cybercrime. All these threats have long since transcended national borders.

Cybercrime in particular is growing rapidly today. It affects ordinary citizens, businesses, banks and government systems, and therefore requires constant attention and close interaction among our countries.

Distinguished participants of the meeting!

Speaking about the future of the Commonwealth, it is also important to remember that our countries are bound by people. These are human ties that have developed over decades. And it is precisely these ties that largely determine the resilience of our relations.

Therefore, it is important that students, young professionals, scientists, researchers and representatives of creative professions have more opportunities to communicate, learn from one another and work together.

This applies especially to young people. After all, it is the younger generation that will determine what the Commonwealth will be like.

The human and intellectual potential of our countries is enormous. It is important to create conditions in which this potential will work for the emergence of modern industries, innovation and new jobs.

At the heart of all our work must remain the individual, their dignity, their interests and their opportunities. Only then will the CIS be perceived as a space where one can study, work, create new projects, find partners and build one's future.

Dear colleagues!

We intend to use our chairmanship to preserve everything that has already proven its effectiveness, while at the same time giving additional impetus to the areas where new solutions are needed today.

It is important that, as a result, we are left not only with documents and agreements, but also with concrete outcomes that will continue to work.

In this work, we count on the support of all Commonwealth states.

In conclusion, I would like once again to sincerely thank esteemed Serdar Gurbangulyyevich Berdimuhamedov for the hospitality and the excellent organization of our meeting.

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