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Presidents Rumen Radev and Shavkat Mirziyoyev Signed a Joint Declaration to Strengthen Cooperation between Bulgaria and Uzbekistan

The Bulgarian head of state is on an official visit to Uzbekistan

Presidents Rumen Radev and Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed today in Tashkent a joint declaration on strengthening cooperation between Bulgaria and Uzbekistan. The document confirms the significant political, economic and cultural ties between the two countries and takes into account the results achieved within the framework of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the EU countries and the Republic of Uzbekistan. The declaration underlines the determination of the two countries to strengthen bilateral political dialogue and cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, investment, connectivity, culture and educational exchanges.

Bulgaria and Uzbekistan share long-standing friendly relations based on mutual trust, respect and extremely constructive dialogue, emphasised the Head of State Rumen Radev, who is today on an official visit to the Republic of Uzbekistan at the invitation of his Uzbek counterpart, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. In the presence of the two heads of state, a Cooperation Program for the period 2026-2027 between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the two countries and a Memorandum of Understanding between the Municipality of Sofia and the Municipality of Tashkent were also exchanged.

During the meeting of Presidents Radev and Mirziyoyev, energy, transport and digital connectivity, industry, high technologies, the automotive sector, science, education, artificial intelligence, agriculture and food production were highlighted as particularly promising areas for the development of bilateral cooperation. The Bulgarian head of state noted that Uzbekistan is the most dynamically developing economy in the region, whose potential is based not only on natural resources, but also on high-tech production, and welcomed Uzbekistan's ambition to develop its nuclear energy, in which Bulgaria has 50 years of experience in the safe and effective exploitation of nuclear power and can share its experience and expertise.

President Radev also pointed to the important role of the two countries in the connectivity between Europe and Asia and the development of the Trans-Caspian international transport route, the strategic advantages of the Bulgarian Black Sea ports and the growing importance of commodity flows on the Bulgarian-Turkish border, which is the second in the world in terms of the volume of goods transported across it. I am glad that we can work comprehensively so that we can build both connectivity to help our regions, and transport goods, produce and jointly enter third-country markets, the head of state added.

Rumen Radev expressed confidence that the Uzbek -Bulgarian Business Forum, which is taking place tomorrow immediately after today's Tashkent International Investment Forum, will deepen contacts between representatives of business and industry from both countries and will lead to the implementation of joint projects. Rumen Radev will participate in the opening of today's forum together with President Mirziyoyev.

Earlier in the day, the Bulgarian head of state was welcomed with a solemn ceremony at the presidential residence Koksaroy in Tashkent, after which the two presidents held a one-on-one meeting and chaired plenary talks between the official delegations of Bulgaria and Uzbekistan. Rumen Radev extended an invitation to President Mirziyoyev to visit our country.

Today, the head of state will take part in the high-level panel of the Tashkent International Investment Forum, which will be opened by the President of Uzbekistan. The event has been held since 2022 and brings together investors from all over the world. In the capital of Uzbekistan, Rumen Radev will also meet with Tanzila Norbayeva - Chairperson of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis (Supreme Assembly of the Republic of Uzbekistan).

The following is the full text of the joint document signed by the two presidents:

JOINT STATEMENT

H. E. Rumen Radev, President of the Republic of Bulgaria,

and H. E. Shavkat Mirziyoyev, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Today, June 10th, 2025, the President of the Republic of Bulgaria,

H. E. Rumen Radev amd the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan,

H. E. Shavkat Mirziyoyev held talks in Tashkent in the context of the official visit of the Head of State of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Republic of Uzbekistan and concluded the following:

Noting with great satisfaction the substantial political, economic and cultural ties, which have had been developed in more than three decades in the spirit of traditionally friendly and constructive cooperation;

Reaffirming the strong commitment to develop the bilateral relations in support of global peace and security, full respect of the UN Charter and the principles of international law, as well as the values of democracy, rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms;

Recalling the role and responsibility of Bulgaria and Uzbekistan to contribute to international peace, prosperity and sustainable development;

Recognizing, in particular, the importance of continued political dialogue and support for deepening bilateral trade and investment, as well as developing and promoting the potential of people-to-people exchanges and sectorial cooperation in various fields of mutual interest;

Taking into account the high outcomes achieved within the framework of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, on the one hand, and the Republic of Uzbekistan, on the other hand, signed on 21 June 1996, in Florence;

Reaffirming the strong commitment to the objectives of the 2019 EU Strategy for Central Asia, the Joint Roadmap for Deepening EU-Central Asia Relations, adopted on 23 October 2023 in Luxembourg, and the Joint Declaration following the First European Union – Central Asia Summit, held on 4 April 2025 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan; and

Expressing the mutual resolute determination to further expand and strengthen the bilateral cooperation across all fields of mutual interest,

We agreed to intensify the relations between our two countries aiming at achieving an Enhanced Cooperation in the following areas:

Political dialogue: We expressed our will to intensify the political dialogue between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Uzbekistan through regular bilateral exchanges and consultations on issues of mutual interest. We noted the importance and role of dialogue, and expressed readiness to intensify mutual visits of delegations and encourage the further development of bilateral inter-parliamentary relations, and the expansion of the bilateral treaty base.

Trade, economic and investment cooperation: We expressed our readiness to actively promote the sustainable increase of the bilateral trade and investment to the mutual advantage of the two countries; enhance contacts and mutually beneficial cooperation between relevant ministries, agencies, businesses, branch organisations and other economic actors engaged in promoting trade, investments and tourism. In this context, we recognized the special role of the Bulgaria-Uzbekistan Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation.

Connectivity: We expressed our willingness to enhance the bilateral cooperation in all dimensions of the connectivity agenda, including transport infrastructure networks, direct flight connections, logistics providers and transport operators. We recognized the existing great potential for cooperation, in particular with regard to boosting our cooperation aimed at achieving sustainable and effective connectivity between Europe and Asia in the context of the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor (TCTC).

Cultural, educational and tourism cooperation and people-to-people contacts: We stressed our commitment to contribute to the promotion our bilateral cultural cooperation, and people-to-people exchanges in order to increase the mutual understanding of their respective cultures. We agreed to seek ways to facilitate the mobility of researchers and students, using the relevant frameworks and instruments established within the context of bilateral, as well as the EU – Uzbekistan cooperation. We recognized the potential in the areas of science, technology and innovation and stressed the added value of the scientific cooperation, intersectoral mobility and the attraction of researchers and high-skilled experts.

We expressed our mutual will to further promote our bilateral cooperation in the area of culture and creative industries, including film, animation, music, manufacturing of musical instruments, and planning and organizing of exhibitions. We stressed the need to engage in bilateral discussions aimed at developing stronger cooperation in the field of youth policies.

We emphasized the important role of tourism in providing economic benefits, friendship and mutual understanding, as well as the need to reinforce our bilateral cooperation in the field of tourism by promoting collaborations between our tourism business sectors, sharing experience in training and employing high-end technologies to the tourism industry.

We expressed mutual interest in deepening our two countries’ cooperation in the field of labor migration. In this regard, we discussed the results of the working visit of a high-level delegation from the Republic of Uzbekistan led by the Director of the Migration Agency under the Cabinet of Ministers to Bulgaria in May 2025, and agreed to explore the possibility of concluding an Agreement on a Comprehensive Migration and Mobility Partnership.

Regional and global cooperation: We warmly welcomed the dynamically evolving cooperation between the European union and Central Asia and expressed our commitment to continue contributing to the expansion and broadening of this important cooperation, which is bringing significant benefits to both the European union and the countries of Central Asia region.

In this regard, we welcomed the successful inaugural Summit European union – Central Asia, held in Samarkand on April 4th, 2025, and noted with appreciation the announcement of the €12 billion EU Investment Package aimed at advancing regional priorities in transport and digital connectivity, clean energy transition, and sustainable development.

We recognized the central role of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreements (EPCAs) as a powerful instrument for unlocking the full potential of bilateral and interregional cooperation between the EU and the Central Asia countries. In this context, we shared the strong common will to proceed as soon as possible with the signing and ratification of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European union and the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Signed in Tashkent on June 10th, 2025, in the Bulgarian, Uzbek and English languages.