On the afternoon of October 17, 2026 local time, Premier of the State Council Li Qiang held talks with Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Abdulla Aripov in Tashkent.
Li Qiang stated that President Xi Jinping and President Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a meeting in August this year, providing further guidance for the development of bilateral relations. Next year will mark the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Uzbekistan. China stands ready to work with Uzbekistan to take this opportunity to carry forward traditional friendship, deepen political mutual trust, strengthen practical cooperation, advance the building of a China-Uzbekistan community with a shared future to greater depth, and bring greater benefits to the two peoples.
Li Qiang pointed out that China stands ready to strengthen the alignment of development strategies with Uzbekistan, further leverage their complementary economic strengths, deepen cooperation in such fields as energy and resources, artificial intelligence, and modern agriculture, steadily advance connectivity in infrastructure, finance and other areas, promote the high-quality construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, and strive to achieve more outcomes. China is willing to import more high-quality and specialty products from Uzbekistan and welcomes Uzbekistan to make good use of platforms such as the China International Import Expo to actively expand its presence in the Chinese market. The two sides should continue to make good use of the mutual visa-exemption policy, expand two-way people-to-people exchanges, strengthen exchanges and cooperation in culture, tourism, education, youth exchanges, subnational cooperation and other areas, and continuously enhance mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples. China stands ready to maintain close coordination and cooperation with Uzbekistan under multilateral mechanisms such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the China-Central Asia mechanism, and the United Nations, encourage all parties to jointly put the four global initiatives into practice, and advance an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization.
Abdulla Aripov stated that Uzbekistan admires China’s tremendous achievements in development and sincerely appreciates China’s strong support for Uzbekistan’s reform and development endeavors. Under the joint guidance of the two heads of state, Uzbekistan-China relations have continuously reached new heights. Uzbekistan stands ready to work with China to make every effort to advance the construction of Belt and Road projects, including the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in such fields as economy, trade, investment, agriculture, energy and mineral resources, customs, finance, digital technology, artificial intelligence, and ecological protection, strengthen exchanges in tourism, education, subnational cooperation and other areas, coordinate closely in multilateral affairs, and continue to make new progress in developing the Uzbekistan-China all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era.
Before the talks, the two prime ministers watched a video showcasing practical cooperation between China and Uzbekistan across various fields.
Following the talks, the two sides jointly witnessed the signing of multiple cooperation documents in such fields as economy and trade, education, customs, health, and poverty reduction. During the visit, the two sides also signed cooperation documents in such fields as e-commerce, climate, and media.
On the afternoon of the same day, Li Qiang laid a wreath at the Monument to the Independence of Uzbekistan.
Wu Zhenglong attended the above activities.