PM Narendra Modi congratulates Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on 2nd poll win

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on his election victory on Monday, October 25, and expressed optimism that the strategic partnership between the two countries will expand in his second term. According to preliminary results released on Monday, Uzbekistan's incumbent president has won a second five-year term in the closely controlled Central Asian country.

PM Modi shared the greetings on his official Twitter account. He wrote, "Heartiest congratulations to President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on his victory in the election. I am confident that the India-Uzbekistan strategic partnership will continue to strengthen in your second term. My best wishes to you and the friendly people of Uzbekistan."

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has been re-elected for a second five-year term. Mirziyoyev won with 80.1% of the vote in Sunday's election, according to Uzbekistan's Central Election Commission. The turnout rate was 80.8%. Mirziyoyev faced four low-visibility candidates in Sunday's election. Independent candidates were not permitted to run for office.

Mirziyoyev's victory will empower him to push his reform agenda even further

Experts believe that Mirziyoyev's victory will empower him to push his reform agenda even further, potentially leading to Uzbekistan opening up even more to foreign trade and investment - all while maintaining a highly centralised political system. Mirziyoyev has softened several of his predecessor's policies after gaining power in 2016 following the death of former President Islam Karimov. 

Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited the region earlier this month for the third time in four months. Jaishankar visited with his counterparts from Russia, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan before arriving in Armenia on October 13 to discuss regional cooperation. Jaishankar arrived in Uzbekistan on Monday, October 11. He discussed issues of bilateral and regional cooperation and exchanged views on developments in the neighbourhood with his Uzbek counterpart, FM Abdulaziz Kamilov. In a tweet, Jaishankar had announced that the conversation was 'focused' on recent developments in Afghanistan. Both India and Uzbekistan have been eager to re-establish organic ties. The President of Uzbekistan's travel to India in January 2019 to attend the dynamic Gujarat global investment summit highlighted Uzbekistan's intention to strengthen ties with India. The first virtual summit for Uzbekistan with any country was conducted in December 2020 between Mirziyoyev and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which led to the signing of multiple pacts. In 2020, there were several more Indo-Uzbek Ministerial Dialogues.

(Image: AP/PTI)